


Change the Future, would ya?

by Harry1981



Series: Change the time, would ya? [1]
Category: Captain America (Movies), Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies)
Genre: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie) Spoilers, Bucky's POV, Captain America: The First Avenger Compliant, Domestic Avengers, F/M, Fix-It, Fluff, Friendship, LATER, Peggy's POV, Post-Avengers: Infinity War Part 1 (Movie), Relationships to be added - Freeform, Steve's Pov, Time Travel, Time Travel Fix-It, almost, but still, not exactly
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-05
Updated: 2018-07-09
Packaged: 2019-05-18 16:01:57
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 20,878
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14855825
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harry1981/pseuds/Harry1981
Summary: The first time Steve Rogers met Tony Stark, he was lying in one of the dead-end alleyways, clutching his hand like his life depended on it and crying without making a sound.The first time Tony Stark met Steve Rogers, the Captain is out of breath in Berlin, looking at Loki tired and all he can mutter is “Mr Antony Edward Stark.”





	1. The First Meeting

**Author's Note:**

> I know I was supposed to continue Turning Back Time, but then this came and voila! Thankfully, I won't abandon my this work like my others cause I have half of this written. the chapters will be small and hopefully, you will like it!

The first time Steve Rogers met Tony Stark, he was lying in one of the dead-end alleyways, clutching his hand like his life depended on it and crying without making a sound.

Steve Rogers was a short man, too skinny and small to actually help anyone, but he had a heart bigger than anyone. So obviously, when he was returning home after a hard day, finding a strange man who wore strange clothes-and was that something made out of metal, half scraped on his body?-Steve had to help him.

Steve slowly moved towards the man, reaching out to him. “Hello?”

The man did not move. His shoulders continued to shake as tears slipped down his eyes. He didn’t make one sound. His hand was tightly clutched shut-it seemed as if he was holding some kind of ash.

“Mate?” Steve said again, this time holding the man on his shoulder. “Are you all right?”

The man seemed to realize something as his eyes flung open. Steve could see they were red even from behind. He moved quickly, his hand always curled protectively. When Steve saw those brown eyes, filled with pain and loss and wonder, he couldn’t help but feel at loss.

“Steve?”

For a fleeting moment, Steve thought he was dreaming. But then the man said his name again, slowly standing up.

Steve moved back as the man looked at him. Now that he was standing, he looked like a giant and truly, Steve was terrified because the anger in his eyes was hard to miss.

“Do I know you?” Steve finally asked, looking at the man.

That made him snap out, as his eyes began to slit and he looked around. “Where am I? What is this place? What happened?”

Steve raised his hand in what he hoped was a comforting gesture. “Whoa. Calm down there.”

The man listened and then looked at him, puzzled. “Why are you so small?”

Usually, Steve would have punched anyone who called him ‘small’. But this guy-well, first, of all he knew Steve’s name and then he looked genuinely confused.

“I was born this way,” Steve said, shrugging. “Ma said God made me this way. She said it was special.”

The thoughts of his mother, who had recently passed away made his heart ache. But he tried not to dwell on the sad moments-he tried to remember his ma happily.

“What?”

Steve looked at the man as he looked at Steve as if he had seen some kind of alien. “What year is this?”

Steve should have laughed or ran away. What kind of a person asked him what year was it??

But then Steve felt pity build up in him like never before. So he smiled and said, “1938.”

And that was when all hell broke loose.

Steve, in all honesty, had never seen a man fall down as quickly as he went down. Bucky would say Steve fell down that quickly if he was punched but it wasn’t like Steve saw that.

Fresh set of tears came out as the man began wailing in that alleyway. He was crying, still clutching that ash. Had someone he loved been burnt down?

Steve did not know. But he did not want to know. He understood grief. He knew it better than anyone else.  So he moved forward and held the man close, allowing him to cry fresh set of tears as he clutched on to the small Steve Rogers.

And that was how Bucky Barnes found his best mate, holding an unknown and weird man-who looked like someone out of a science fiction novel-and letting him cry on his shoulder.

James “Bucky” Barnes knew his best friend too well. The man would go on to help anyone in need and wouldn’t ask for anyone in return. So finding him letting someone cry on his shoulder was not a big deal.

However, the man’s weird get up was something to worry.

“Stevie?”

The smaller man looked up at his best friend, brining his finger to his lips immediately. Bucky raised his hand in surrender, walking towards the weird duo. Seriously, where did that punk find such people from?

“Who’s this?” he whispered. Maybe Steve found another stray that day.

When Steve shrugged, Bucky’s widened and he couldn’t control himself as he shouted-“STEVE!”

The man jerked back immediately and Steve gave him that look that was apparently supposed to be scary.

Bucky would have continued to shout at his dunderhead friend but the man was looking at Bucky like he meant murder. He usually didn’t have a problem beating up guys, but this one? Gosh, he made a chill run down Bucky’s spine.

“Hey pal,” Bucky rubbed his hands-were they seriously sweating? “Um, sorry about that.”

The man’s tears had dried and the red eyes screamed murder. With his lips thinning, he muttered, “Barnes.”

Bucky raised an eyebrow. “You know me?”

Steve walked beside Bucky and looked at the man with the same puppy look. “He knows my name too. Who are you? What happened?”

The man looked at both of them, before carefully removing a part of his armor, probably?-and dumping what was left of the ash on it.

“I shouldn’t be here,” the man said, looking anywhere but at the two men in front of him. “This is wrong. Fuck Strange! Fuck Thanos! Fuck both of you!”

Steve raised an eyebrow at the language. He had a bad mouth, but that-wow. That was something else.

Bucky was not sure if he loved the guy or hated him.

“Why both of you?” the man shouted, looking at them with those bloodshot eyes. “Why is it always the both of you? The star spangled man and the bloody brainwashed assassin? Every pain in my life is brought by both of you! Why the fuck!”

“Okay, all right!” Bucky immediately stepped in front of Steve, placing a protective hand around the skinny man, “Man, I have no idea what you are talking about. Neither does Steve. Who are? How do you know our names? And what have we done?”

The man began babbling something, before turning around, placing the ash plate on a garbage can and muttering something about ‘Captain America’ and ‘Winter Soldier’. Bucky did not understand a word of it.

Steve, the great person he was, placed a calming hand on Bucky and brought out his puppy eyes.

“Buck, this man needs our help. He knows us but he is a blubbering mess. We have to help him.”

Bucky raised his eyebrows. “You are joking, huh, punk? This man is mad!”

“He knows us Buck!” Steve said, “There must be something we are missing.”

Before the other man could reply, Steve went forward and put his hand on the weird man. He turned back angrily, staring at Steve. But the punk just smiled and said, “You know or names. Don’t you think it is better we know yours as well?”

Bucky had no idea what the punk did, but the man seemed to calm down and mutter, “Tony.” Before pulling away. Steve smiled.

“Tony, whatever it is, we can help you.”

“We can?”

“Why don’t you come with us to my apartment? We can work everything out.”

“What?!”

Ignoring Bucky, Steve continued to give a smile to Tony. Tony looked at the two and it was then that both Bucky and Steve realized that he looked exhausted.

Okay, fine, Bucky could see why Steve was so adamant on taking care of the man. He looked so broken.

In one way, Bucky could see Steve in the weird man.

And that was how Tony Stark met Bucky Barnes.


	2. Settling in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve and Bucky begin to accept and understand the new friend they have gained

“Are you two together or what?”

Bucky choked on the soup as Steve let a plate he was washing fall on the ground and allowed it to shatter. Tony curled up on the sofa, slowly setting down the tools he was holding. He frowned and looked at the two shocked men.

Two weeks. For two bloody weeks, the mysterious Tony with apparently no last name was living with Steve and Bucky had all but moved in.  Happily ever after, huh?

At first, he was wary of them both, throwing insults at them and crying at nights, holding the small jar in which he had shifted the ash.

The first time Bucky tried touching Tony, Tony had jerked away, not saying a single word. Bucky was still young, he did not understand a lot. But the man’s behaviour was preposterous.

But damn, the glare the man gave him. It was as if he was peering into Bucky’s soul and looking at the deepest darkest secret he had to hide. It didn’t help that Bucky’s darkest secret was that he had once let Steve get beaten up.

For Steve, Tony came as a blessing. After his Ma, he had Bucky. But even Bucky wasn’t always free. Steve was a bloody mother hen and he needed to take care of someone. Always.

Tony? Well, that guy was the perfect candidate.

The first two days, Tony behaved...oddly. While it was clear that he was thankful to both Steve and Bucky, he remained quiet and spent every breathing moment glaring as the two men laughed and talked.

Three days later, he finally came to Steve to apologize and say he was delusional and apologized to Bucky as well.

Tony still refused to tell them how he knew their names or where had he come from.

The next day, Tony managed to fix every single faulty electronic in Steve’s home with mere tools and Bucky had jokingly said that they had found a gold mine.

Which they did, as Tony for the next week went around fixing other people’s electronics in Brooklyn and earned enough to last a month.

Then that idiot came and dumped everything in Steve’s hand, saying, “As long as I am allowed in this house with food, I don’t want this money.”

And just like that, the two idiots from Brooklyn found their third mad member of the family.

Now, however, what Tony had said was beyond...imagination.

“Do I look like a fag to you?” Bucky demanded, temper flaring inside him.

Tony raised his hand in surrender as Steve turned pink and began picking up the pieces of the broken plate.

“You two are just so close,” Tony said, curling up on the sofa, “I mean you guys share a bed for God’s sake! A guy has his doubts.”

Bucky and Steve both knew Tony was holding back, but they did not comment.  

“There’s a thing known as friendship, Tony. Heard of it?”

Tony actually flinched at that, as if Bucky’s words had brought back bad memories. But if Bucky had learnt anything about Tony, it was that sometimes the man just did not know when to shut his mouth.

“So...you two totally like girls? Like no romantic feelings for each other?”

“Yeah!” Steve muttered, looking at Tony and shaking like anything. Was it because of cold or shame? “I mean, Buck is like my brother. And loving a man is...sin.”

Tony legit snorted at the comment but did not say anything.

“Yeah, sure. So say, one of you was a criminal. Just a scenario, a totally hypothetical scenario with no connection to reality. One of you was a criminal and the other had to cross all the countries of the world to save the other one. Would you do it?”

“Hell yeah!” Bucky said, standing up and taking the empty bowl of soup over to the sink.  “That is what friends are for, nay? Making sure the other one is not in danger.”

“huh.” Was all that Tony had to offer.

“And why would either of us be a criminal?” Steve turned to look at Tony. The thought made him...uncomfortable.

“As I said, a mere hypothetical scenario.”

Steve and Bucky exchanged a glance. Tony, well, Tony was hiding something.

“Guess the 21st century is much different n friendship and all.”

Tony was weird that way. He had some weird views and some weird words.

* * *

 

“Tones! Come out here ya jerk!”

Steve had to hold his laughter as Bucky pounded on the door of his bedroom and Tony hid inside. It was Tony’s fault, in Steve’s opinion.

First of all Tony had no idea how to clean clothes.

Fixing a machine? Yes, Tony could do that.

Building weapons? Steve had seen the blueprints Tony had created on his drawing paper.

Solving some weird mathematical equation? Hell yes, Tony could do that.

But household work, like cooking or washing clothes? Steve would bet all his earnings, not that he had much- that Tony with no last name could easily fail in this particular task.

 So when he took up the initiative to wash his, Steve’s and Bucky’s clothes, Steve knew the plan was doomed to fail. Now, Bucky’s “lucky white shirt” was pink.

“Buck, I said I am sorry!” came the voice of Tony from inside the room.

“You young idiot!”

Steve snorted. After four weeks together, they had established that Tony was over forty. Double their ages, in fact. But Bucky still called him young. As if everyone around that jerk was young.

Well, Tony must be a genius but he was just an overgrown child in reality.

Bucky punched the door so hard that it actually flew open as the lock broke.

“Buck!”

Ignoring Steve’s shout of anger, Bucky marched in as if to destroy the other man.

Great, another expense. Hopefully, Steve would just have to but the parts and Tony would fix it.

 There were some yelps from within the room and Steve merely turned on the volume of the radio to reduce the noise his best friends were making.

In a flash, Tony ran out of the room and crashed on the couch beside Steve, literally picking him up and putting him in front of himself. Steve yelped at being carried like a baby. Before he could offer any more form of resistance, Bucky stormed out and looked at Tony.

“Steve, move away!”

“Save me, my Captain, oh Captain!”

“Steve, move!”

“It’s not like I have a choice!”

As a result, the pillow landed on Steve and that was how the pillow fight began among the three of them.

By the time they stopped, Steve was almost having an asthmatic attack, Tony was complaining about stiff joints and Bucky was breathing deeply.

Then, once Steve had calmed down, he began snorting. Tony looked at him and cracked a grin. Bucky raised an eyebrow at the two as they laughed and kicked each other. Shaking his head, Bucky hit them again with the pillow.

That was how the three of them found themselves laughing their asses off in the middle of the summer on the floor of Steve’s apartment.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I...am so blown away by the response. Thank you so much. Please, if there's anything you want to see, tell me!


	3. Slipping in

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> New things are found out, some questions are asked

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...this chapter is shorter than the other but it has some angst...some sadness. Just a warning.   
> I won't be able to update so frequently cause school starts soon. But worry not! I have already started working on the sequel so yaay!

“Hypothetically Steve, if you had to choose between Buck and I, whom would you chose?”

Steve sighed, putting down the pencil. Tony and his hypothetical questions.

Last week, he had asked Steve if he would choose a gun or a shield.

How in the name hell does a fella choose between a gun and a shield?

Then he had asked Steve which are better-robots taking over Earth or aliens trying to destroy the universe?

What kind of a question is that?

Bucky had immediately taken over the question, having a two-hour-long debate with Tony on the topic and both concluded that Aliens destroying universe is better because apparently then the attention would not be directed on Earth only.

That led Tony to lock himself in their shared room and fix all the electronics he had to fix in a month within 24 hours, no sleep.

Steve honestly worried about Tony's health.

The guy looked over forty, had dark circles under his eyes and the wrinkles were kind of hard to miss. His air as white on the sides.

Tony's age, however, wasn't the problem. 

Every other day, Steve heard Tony wake up in the middle of the night gasping for breath. He would look around, trying to make sure both him and Bucky are asleep, would take the jar os ash and hug it close before crying himself to sleep.

Steve didn't know how to handle him and Bucky said Tony was a big fella who wold hande himself.

Steve disagreed.

"Coem on Stevie, answer!"

His artwork had to wait, Steve concluded, as Bucky peeped over his book. Tony was fixing the radio again, not looking at either one of them.

“I...don’t know. I will probably be the one who will be needed to be saved.”

Bucky grinned and Tony legit snorted. “Not after the serum.”

“What?”

“What?”

Steve looked suspiciously at Tony’s innocent puppy face. This fella was definitely hiding something.

* * *

 

The first time Steve and Tony got into a fight, Bucky was furious.

They did not get into a fight with other. God Almighty no. They got into a fight with a couple of bullies who were calling out to Tony for something he had said. Steve naturally got in, because what else would Steve do, right?

Now, Steve was showing off an impressive broken arm and a bruise on his face that will probably stay for upcoming four weeks. Tones had a black eye, a curved scar under his left cheek and-wait. Were those wrinkles? How old was this guy?

“One day,” Bucky muttered, looking at the two men hung their head in shame. “One day I go out with a dame and you two manage to get beaten up. For five months I was happy that my fella had stopped fighting and now!”

Bucky let out a frustrated sigh. He and Steve had been through so many times that Bucky was sure that all his scolding fell over deaf years. Right, it is best to move on to his next target.

“Tony with no last name,” Bucky started angrily and that punk had the audacity to snort. It led him to start coughing. Good. That punk deserved that.

“When five months ago my idiot friend brought you home I thought you were sane. Even with all the weird nonsense talk and you trying to attack me and Stevie your first few days here. Now, you jerk, go on to get into a fight. Now, here’s the deal Tony with no last name, you see the punk here? I have been looking after this idiot since he was six and got into a fight with people twice his size.”

“Buck...”

Bucky ignored Steve’s weak attempt at a protest. There was a reason Bucky looked out for him. And now Steve looked out for Tony. Which was virtually impossible, but he still did.

So Tony needed to repay him. That is what Bucky believed. Honestly, had anyone else found Tony with no last name he would have been inside one of those weird mental facilities.

“There is a reason I have been saving him all these years. Look at him! Do you think this guy deserves to be beaten up?”

Tony slowly looked up, watching as Steve shook his head. Bucky crossed his arms and continued.

“He helped you, he made sure you were at home, he ignored all nonsense you put him through and this is how you repay him? Getting him into a fight because of something that you did?”

“It wasn’t his fault,” Steve protested weakly. Bucky sent a glare at the other man, trying to shut him up. But that little power house refused to shut up. “They were calling him a fag, he tried to sass them out and in turn, they started attacking.”

“Since when does he mind being called a fag?” Bucky all but roared. “Didn’t he call us that like four months ago?”

Bucky’s attention was diverted as Tony gave a humorless chuckle. Bucky turned, ready to pound up on him again but stopped when he saw the guy.

 Bucky had no idea how to interpret that face. He looked sad, heartbroken, tired and relieved? Okay, that guy was totally bonkers. Bucky was making sure he was going to be shipped to those places for mad people just the next day.

“Anthony Edward Stark.”

Bucky was sure he was hallucinating, or maybe hearing ghosts.

“What?” Steve asked slowly.

“My name,” the guy said, slowly massaging his chest. “It’s Anthony Edward Stark. And no, under no circumstance can either of you call me by my full name. It’s Tony or Genius, Playboy, Philanthropist. Got it?”

Bucky had no idea how to react at that.

Thankfully, he did not have to react as tony looked at him, a neutral face on. “I had many reasons to react the way I reacted when I first met you two. I can’t elaborate, cause, well, you won’t understand. But I think I understand. I understand now. Till the end of the line huh?”

Bucky and Steve shared a worried glance. What was the idiot saying? And where did he hear that phrase? Steve and Bucky didn’t use it that often now, did they?

“After all this time,” Tony huffed, “It becomes clear. Here’s tip-communication is the key.”

Bucky raised an eyebrow.

“I didn’t mean to drag Steve into a fight. It just...I lost control. I promise you Buck, it won’t happen again.”

Without any more words, Tony stood up and walked inside the bedroom they all shared, gently closing the door behind him.

Tony with-wait, Antony Edward Stark, well, he was a mystery to them.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> DO let me know what you think of it!


	4. One Secret Out

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Bucky finds some interesting facts about Anthony Edward Stark

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So...I am kind of sorry for the late update but in truth, I am afraid my further updates are going to be a little like this. Holiday's finally over and I have to start working.  
> DO tell me how you feel about this chapter. After three more chapters, I think, we will start with the Captain America movie.

It was their six-month friend-anniversary, Tony declared and pulled Steve and Bucky out to a good restaurant.

Tony really did not know how to stop sending money. It was as if the man had money flowing like damn water. Maybe he was a rich guy-well, Tony had said his last name was Stark and Bucky looked it up. Starks were rich. Howard Stark was well off, after all.

On asking Tony, he had frozen. “Never talk to me about my family,” he had mournfully said, before going out, probably to repair something else and take his mind off whatever Bucky had asked him.

Well, there were no doubts that Tony belonged to the same family. The Starks were genius. Howard was starting a project with flying cars.

Bucky could hardly contain his excitement on the prospect.

They had a nice dinner, Tony paid from what he had earned. Once they were out, Steve took some money from Tones and went on to buy ice cream for the three of them.

“I worry about him.” Bucky suddenly said. He didn’t know why he was telling Tony this of all people, but Tony was actually closest to a friend Bucky had had after Stevie.

“Why?” Tony asked confusion etched on his face.

“Haven’t been hearing to the news jerk?” Bucky scoffed, looking as Steve talked to a little boy near the ice cream stand. “A war is coming. That Hitler fella is going to attack. Knowing us, we will probably join the war. Stevie’s pa died in the Great War. He will try and enlist in this one. I will probably get in, but Stevie? He will be heartbroken. And if something happens to me? That little guy will be all alone.”

Bucky turned, hoping to see Tony making weird faces. But that guy looked so forlorn-as if he was going to die soon.

“What happened?" Bucky worriedly looked as Tony stared at Stevie. He jokingly punched and said, "Hey, I need you to assure me that you will be here.”

Tony looked at Bucky, the pain he had seen on Tony’s face the first time they had met coming back. “I...I won’t be able to be here for Stevie.”

“What?” Bucky was sure he had heard this wrong. Won’t be there? “Why, are you a criminal? You gotta go on a run or something?”

Tony shook his head. “Buck, I...do you believe in magic?”

That was a weird question to ask. Considering whom he was asking. “Um, yeah?”

“Okay, so believe this. I am from the future.”

Bucky legit snorted at the comment. He would have burst out laughing. Did Tony take him to be a fool?

But then came back that expression. That heartbroken, painful expression that was there when Bucky had first met Tony.

The guy wasn’t lying.

“Seriously?”

Tony nodded. “I won’t be here for long. I have been having...dreams. Of a woman. Long story short, I have till 1942 to prevent the future from happening.”

“That...doesn’t make sense.”

Before Tony could reply, Steve appeared, holding three ice creams. “Sorry about being late. That little fella there was all excitedly talking about how he wanted to be a superhero.”

Tony immediately smiled, hiding all the pain. How in the name of God did Tony do that? It was like he had two faces-a real one and a reel one.

 Bucky took the ice cream as Steve continued to talk. “Said he would be a strong guy. Great boy.”

“What was his name?” Tony asked, licking his ice cream.

“Said it was Phil Coulson.”

Tony’s change of expression was worth a hundred dollars. The way his smile disappeared and changed into that of surprise and awe was amazing.

“Agent? He didn’t get the whole set from e-bay! That son of a bitch!”

Bucky for his part did not understand a word of it.

But if the guy was from future, well, things ought to be different for him, nay?

* * *

 

A few nights later, Tony woke up slowly enough to make sure Steve did not wake up and pulled Bucky out of the bed.

“What’s the matter Tones?” Bucky asked as Tony pulled him out of the building and down to the empty road. Tony did not say a word as he pulled Bucky in an empty alleyway.

“Listen to me very carefully Bucky,” Tony said, looking around to check that Steve hadn’t followed them. “The future is messed up. And I need your and Stevie’s help to fix it.”

Bucky immediately woke up. Since the day Tony had told him about being from the future, Bucky was thinking about how that would affect them.

In all honesty, Bucky shouldn’t believe Tony. What he was saying was bonkers.

But there was a part of his brain that made him marvel about this. If Tony was from the future...There were so many things he had to do. So many things he had to ask. What was the future like? Were there flying cars?

But one look at Tony’s face and Bucky knew this was just not the time to joke.

“There will be an organization and they will try to brainwash you and make you an assassin. In that, state, you will do a lot of thing you will regret.”

From the tone of his voice, Bucky knew Tony was talking something serious. Something very serious.

“I need you to act. To pretend that you are broken lot earlier than they want you to break. This way you have an upper hand.”

Tony held Bucky’s shoulder and looked painfully at him. “It’s a bad road ahead for you Buck, a lot of torture. They will try and remove all your memories again and again. I will have something in a week that can probably prevent you from forgetting, but you need to be strong. Do you get me?”

Bucky nodded, looking at Tony. “I will try my best Tony.”

Tony smiled, “Good. One more thing. December 16, 1991. Try and avoid that mission. Okay?”

Bucky cocked his head, surprised at the exact information Tony had supplied him. “Um, sure. I will try.”

* * *

 

 


	5. Cat out of the Bag

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony finally vents it all out

Tony did not talk about time travelling again.

Bucky didn’t ask.

It was about five weeks later after their nightly conversation that Steve pulled him away.

“Okay jerk, off with it.”

He put his hands on his hips as if he was supposed to look intimidating. Bucky was going to shake his head when Steve glared at him.

“You and Tones are hiding something. I know it. What is it now?”

Bucky wasn’t sure how to respond to that. Would Steve believe him? He believed Tony-actually, he didn’t. But he still tried to. But Stevie?

“It’s...It’s not my secret to tell Stevie.” Bucky finally said, running his hand through is growing hair. “If Tones would like to tell you, he would tell ya. Don’t worry.”

Steve huffed, crossing his arms. Before he could speak further, Tony appeared in the kitchen.

“Hey Captain,” Tony grinned, looking at the duo. “Mind if I borrow your protector here for a while?”

Steve looked pointedly at the two of them, before muttering, “I will find out the secret sooner or later.” And walked out.

Tony raised an eyebrow at the display. He looked back at Bucky with a questioning glance. Bucky merely shook his head and gestured Tony to lead.

Tony nodded, before leading Bucky to the one room they had.

Tony had actually changed a corner of the room into a mechanic shop. There were blueprints, tools and some half made machines that Bucky had no idea would work or not. One of those machines often started moving on its own and Tony would call it Dummy.

Bucky had no idea how to interpret that.

Tony gestured Bucky to sit down on a chair as Tony leaned over his table and started working on a microscopic chip.

“What’s that?”

Tony started working on the chip, not looking up. “Remember what I was talking about the other day?  Something for you to have your memories?”

Bucky nodded at the memory. He remembered the damn conversation about how his life is filled with problems.

“I have made this. It’s is based on some of the projects I was working on before I...got here.”

It looked like Tony was remembering a haunting memory. Bucky wanted to comfort the guy, but he really had no idea how.

Thankfully, Tony broke out of that trance and looked back at the chip.

“You will be injected with a serum. This chip will start working then. It will basically store all your memories and make sure you have them no matter what. Think of this as a...backup file.”

Bucky nodded as Tony picked up the chip. It was smaller than a pearl, Bucky noted. And it looked dangerous.

“Where...Where are you going to put this?”

Tony did not look at him, walking around the table and standing behind the chair.

“On your head.”

Bucky’s eyes widened. Damn, a machine on his head.

“Is it safe?”

Bucky couldn’t see Tony as he pushed down Bucky’s head. “Well, I am no Bruce but I can tell ya this is much better than what you will have in the future.”

As Tony pushed the chip somewhere in the middle of his head and he felt it grasping his head, Bucky couldn’t help but feel dread of the future.

* * *

 

“Whose ash is that?”

Eleven months and Tony never told them whom it belonged to. The three never talked about serious topics like Steve’s Ma’s death or Tony’s first introduction, or, in Bucky and Tony’s case, the time travel or the chip currently resting on Bucky’s head.

But Steve was curious about the ash in the jar and he couldn’t stop himself from asking. After all the months, he needed some answers.

What better time to ask than a perfect card night?

Bucky froze, muttering under his breath about Steve’s stupidity. Tony just looked at him, as he had reopened a wound Tony had tried very hard to close. He clutched his eyes shut, letting the cards drop from his hand.

“Why can’t you just keep your mouth shut Rogers?”

Steve never got angry, but Tony was holding back. He was angry at the man. Not because he was holding back, but because he could see that it hurt Tony. Bucky could see it too and when Tony would fall asleep, the two men would often talk about their mysterious new friend, who came out of nowhere and was like just another constant in their life.

They knew he was worried and they wanted to help him. But Tony refused to talk. And Steve had seen him hurt enough. At least he had Bucky to talk about his Ma. Tony? They didn’t know a thing about Tony and Steve just wanted to help.

“Because you need to let it out, Tony!” Steve shouted, dropping his cards. Bucky gently massaged his temples, muttering, “Here we go.”

“You need to let someone in,” Steve said, looking at those bloodshot brown eyes. “You can’t keep hurting. We are your friends and...”

Tony never allowed Steve to finish as he stood up, pushed away from the deck of cards, pushed down the living room table and slammed the bedroom door behind him.

“Great work Stevie,” Bucky muttered, shaking his head. “I will be like those first few days all over again.”

Steve sighed. “I didn’t mean to hurt him, Buck. I am only trying to help Tones.”

Bucky shook his head. “If Tony wanted help, he would have asked for it.”

Steve snorted. “I don’t think Tony would do that.”

Before Bucky could open his mouth to explain, the door opened and Tony came out holding the jar. Steve and Bucky watched as Tony carefully placed down the jar in front of them, unshed tears glimmering in his eyes.

“His name was Peter Parker,” Tony said, his voice hoarse. “He was merely seventeen. He was like, he was like my own son. He just wanted to help people.”

Tony gave a chuckle and shook his head. “Before I found him, he wore spandex and goggles! Who wears spandex and goggles? And that to fight criminals? I doubt Peter could see anything through those lenses.”

Steve stood up slowly, wrapping an arm around Tony. The man was shaking. Tony had closed his eyes as if trying to block out a memory.

“He was trying to help. I didn’t...I didn’t want to make him an Avenger. But we were on the ship and Strange was being, well, Strange. Pun intended.”

Bucky slowly grinned as Tony had a fond smile on his face. “He wasn’t supposed to be there. The parachute was supposed to take him to Earth. But Peter...that kid just always managed to surprise me. He, he came back up, saved all our asses and then got himself killed!”.

Steve felt his heart clench. Why was he always so stupid? He just wanted to help- and in doing so he just messed everything up.

He held the man tightly as Tony began crying. He didn’t understand half of what Tones had said-but Tones talked funny, he had weird ideas.

Steve never meant to harm Tony.

Bucky encircled the man from the other side and said, “Shh, its okay Tones. Everything will be alright.”

“No it won’t,” Tony said stiffly, wiping away his tears and looking at the two men. “I think it’s time you two know who I am.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Okay, so yeah! Cat's out of the bag. Do tell me what you think.  
> Also, you might have noticed I changed the total chapter length. Yup, we only five more chapters to go and then we will jump to the sequel, where we will deal with the second part of our summary.  
> Any ideas what's that going to be like?


	6. two years later...

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> It's time for Steve to be experimented on

_“I think it’s time you two know who I am.”_

Steve woke up in his bed, panting. He immediately reached out to the bedside table and grabbed the inhaler, taking deep breaths and making sure his breath was rhythmic.

Dr Eriksine had left a few hours ago, telling him how he wasn’t allowed to drink the day before the experimentation. But that dream, Steve sighed. It wouldn’t leave him. A drink would have been nice.

Steve looked around, everyone sleeping soundly. He really wished he was back in his apartment in Brooklyn. But he knew he needed to serve his country. He was not above anyone else.

Yet, on days like these, when Tony’s last meeting with him came back to haunt him-Steve craved familiarity.

Why was he such a fool?

_“I am from the future.”_

_Steve’s eyes widened as his hands slowly left Tony’s shoulder. His action was not ignored by either man. Bucky was giving him an angry look as Tony had the same heartbroken face._

_Tony gave a humourless chuckle at Steve’s words. “Already scared Rogers?”_

_“You have gone mad!” Steve all but shouted. He did not know what made him behave this way, but whatever it was made sure Steve reacted like a bomb gone off._

_“Tony, you are being delusional!” Steve said. He looked up at his older friend. “Buck, tell him!”_

_Bucky just made a face, looking at Tony and then at Steve._

_Steve, particularly, couldn’t believe it. “You believe him?”_

_“It explains a few things...” Bucky said lamely but Steve could tell even he was hesitant. The jerk probably accepted the truth out of pity._

_Tony seemed to catch on as well, as he jerked away Bucky’s hand. “You don’t believe me, do you?”_

_“I do!” Bucky protested rather loudly if Steve might add. “I let you put the chip on my head, did I not?”_

_“He has put a chip on your head?” Steve all but shouted, looking at both men. “Have you gone mad?”_

_Tony immediately turned to him, his eyes bloodshot. Steve actually took a few steps back. He was not afraid of bullies, but he was definitely scared of his best friends._

_“What is it with you, Rogers? Why do you always find it so hard to believe or trust me?”_

_Steve didn’t speak, he couldn’t. Bucky didn’t move to stop the older man. He wanted to-say that it was him who had brought Tony home._

_But Tony wasn’t talking about that. He was talking about something else._

_“When we first met you decided to blame everything on me. I was the proud ass. I don’t deny it, but you have always had a problem that I wasn’t damn Howard!”_

_Steve took a step back as Tony moved forward. Bucky was shouting, holding Tony back. Tony didn’t move to get rid of the extra pair of hands but he continued to shout. “You blamed Ultron on me. Bruce was involved you know. And what about Wanda? DO you know why I made Ultron? To make damn sure you did not die. Yes, Captain, that was the vision Wanda showed. All of you, dead! And you asked, me, ME! Why I didn’t save all of you.”_

_Steve held on to the counter behind him, looking at Tony with fearful eyes. Bucky was now almost struggling to hold back the man._

_“I-I don’t understand Tony.” Steve tried to protest meekly._

_“Damn well you don’t!” Tony growled, “You blamed the Accords on me when Lagos was your fault. You expected me to understand that Barnes was brainwashed WHEN YOU DIDN’T DAMN TELL ME BARNES KILLED MY PARENTS!”_

Steve splashed himself with cold water. He still couldn’t understand what Tony meant. But he knew he had messed up. Big time.

Tony hadn’t answered Bucky as he bombarded him with questions. Bucky seemed to speak something along the lines of December 16, but Steve did not understand. Steve was not sure what to think.

Tony had shut himself in the room. Bucky and Steve stood outside the door, banging and asking Tony to come out. Exhausted, Steve had fallen asleep.

When he woke up the next day, Bucky was asleep and Tony-Tony was gone with all his stuff and some money he had made.

Bucky hadn’t talked to him for a week, which was the longest they had ever gone without speaking to each other.

Once the war had started, Bucky and Steve pushed Tony to the back of their mind and started working, trying to make sure they got in.

Bucky got his orders, and Steve? He became a part of the program.

The procedure was to take place tomorrow.

Steve wasn’t sure if he could do it without Bucky or Tony.

* * *

 

As Steve lay there, he felt...small.

The drive to Brooklyn with Peggy was normal. He had babbled away and Peggy had not looked down on him, thinking him to be a stupid boy.

Steve liked Peggy.

He was without his shirt on, looking up. He tried joking with the doctor, but even as he treated it like a joke, Steve couldn’t.

“How are the levels, Mr Stark?”

Mr Stark?

Steve whipped his head, some part of his mind hoping to see Tony.

But no, it was just Howard Stark. Right.

Tony had said he had compared him to this man. Did they become close friends?

“Levels are at 100%.” The man said, coming forward and Steve could see some resemblance between him and Tony.

God, he wished Tony was there.

He would have made some lame jokes and then been in awe at everything he was seeing. So would be Bucky, honestly. Those two science geeks would be so happy.

But if Tony was from the future-all of this must be ancient for him.

Steve watched as Peggy moved away and everybody began taking the position.

Any minute now.

Steve’s stomach was lurching. He wasn’t sure if he would make out of this alive.

Jesus, he needed an inhaler.

As Erskinene gave his speech and the nurses began working, there was a crash and a loud swearing.

“Sorry I am late!”

Steve’s head snapped at the voice.

There on the entrance, wearing the most expensive suit Steve had ever seen, stylish sunglasses over his eyes, Tony Stark stood in his full glory.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, yes...that was the chapter. We will closely follow Captain America: the first Avenger now. There can be more POV's now. So, stay tuned!


	7. Start Of Someting New

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony and Steve talk

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> 103 KUDOS!!! you guys are the best!  
> Sorry about the long wait! School made sure I didn't have even a moment to breathe. But I am back with a longer chapter and you know what? The story might extend to twelve to fifteen chapters. I had some good ideas before starting a sequel so. *shrugs*.  
> Thanks for the wait and enjoy the chapter!

“Mr Potts!”

Colonel Philips came down the stairs, a huge smile over his face. He greeted Tony with a handshake and Steve could only gape as he led the younger man with a warm attitude.

“Doctor?”

Dr Eriksine raised an eyebrow. Steve’s eyes were, however, fixed on Tony. “Who-Who is he?”

“Our biggest donor, I must say,” Dr Eriksine hurriedly explained, checking the equipment. “The State fund was lacking. That is Tony Potts, a businessman whose weapon is almost at par with Stark’s.”

He patted Steve gently on the shoulder, smiling charmingly. “You will meet him after the experiment.”

* * *

 

Everything was kind of a blur for Steve as he walked out of the experiment. One moment he was taller, the other someone shot Dr Eriksine and before he knew, he was running out to chase the killer.

Once he got back, nobody understood what the thing was that the killer was going to drive. The Hydra people were smart, Steve concluded.

Colonel Philips decided to very graciously say no to him. Steve knew he looked like a kicked puppy. He was so close to his dream...just this close.

So when Mr Senator came to him with an offer to serve his country, Steve just couldn’t say no.

 “Mr Senator!”

Steve turned around on hearing Tony’s voice again. The man ignored him and put a hand over his shoulder.

How did Tony do that?

He gave one of his fake smiles. Yes, Steve knew when they were fake- and looked at Senator. “If I may say-Mr Rogers here is quite new to these things. Do you think you will mind if I come helping around?”

The Senator smiled, happy at the prospect. “Absolutely not, Mr Potts. If anything it will be our great pleasure.”

Tony and Senator shook hands. Steve signed the papers.

And Tony at once withdrew his hands and began walking away.

Steve did not waste a second to go after him, shouting his name.

As the two men stood at the entrance of the building, Tony stopped. Steve watched as he rubbed his temples, before turning around.

Tony had not taken off his glasses, but Steve could see that the man was irritated. Damn, he was pissed.

“Yes, Mr Rogers?”

The tone was purely professional. Steve hated every syllable of it.

“Tony,” Steve could feel his own voice break. “Please.”

“Please what Steve?” Tony demanded, finally taking a step forward. “Please what? Please listen to you? Please explain? I don’t want to do a damn thing with you, Rogers. The only reason I am accompanying you is so that you do not make a fool of yourself out there. I came back to make sure the worst did not happen. And I am going to do my job.”

Before Tony could turn around and walk away, Steve moved forward and grabbed his hand. “Tony, please. I...I want to talk to you.”

Tony moved halfway round and slightly raised his eyebrow.

Steve saw it as an opportunity. “I was wrong. I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did. When you left, we tried to find you everywhere. But you were gone. I know it is no excuse for what happened but damn Tony! I am sorry.”

Steve didn’t know what else to say. He had no idea how to continue, how to convince Tony he is really sorry after two years.

Tony jerked his arm away from Steve and Steve didn’t stop him. Tony did not look at him, but said, “Meet me at the Golden Beach at 8 sharp. We will talk then. Don’t be late, though I can’t speak about myself.”

As Tony left, Steve felt a heavy burden lift off his heart.

* * *

 

The place Tony had called Steve to was...expensive.

Steve had asked Peggy about the Golden Beach. Peggy had raised an eyebrow and given him directions to the place, followed by telling him to wear something smart.

He wore one good shirt he had and a pair of formal trousers. As soon as he told his name to the man on the desk, he was led forward to one of the private rooms.

Steve had reached on 7:45. Tony was already sitting there.

“You’re early” Tony commented as Steve took his seat across Tony. The older man held a glass of whisky and again, his eyes were covered.

Exactly how rich had Tony gotten in two years?

“So are you,” Steve said hoping to diffuse the tension.  

Tony gave a slight smirk, shaking his head. “Not changed, have you, Rogers?”

Steve let his shoulders droop, allowing himself to relax. He was still getting used to his new body and his body was always on alert. However, seeing Tony relax made him feel relaxed.

“So,” Tony moved back, whirling his glass of whisky. “Anything you would like to order?”

Steve wanted to say no and jump to the topic. But his stomach gave a loud protest. Tony smirked before ordering everything on the menu.

Literally.

“You got rich.”

_Smooth Rogers._

Tony shrugged. “I did what I do best. Engineering.”

Steve gulped. “Dr Eriksine said you-you funded the experiment?”

Smiling, Tony took off his glasses and for the first time in a long time, Steve felt that he was talking to Tones.

“When I was a kid Steve, I had this huge collection of Captain America comics. My Old man was personally invested in the experiment that made Captain America and more than often I had heard him grumble about how with more funds, the experiment could have gone better. Coming back, if I could stop one of the constant irritating babbling from my dad, why shouldn’t I?”

Steve felt anger bubble up inside. How exactly did Howard Stark behave with his son? yes, Steve knew how they were related. it wasn' that hard and his mind was working better than before.

He watched as Tony shook his head and looked up, finally meeting his eye. “You wanted to talk?”

Steve nodded urgently, before opening his mouth. “I-I am sorry Tones.”

Tony shrugged. “Already heard it. Can we move on?”

It was going to be difficult, Steve realized. “I-I believe your story.”

Tony raised one single eyebrow. Gulping, Steve continued. “Bucky and I talked about it after you left. We made a plan, kind of? We collected some things, information from what you had said and decided to help in any way we could.”

He was interrupted as the waiter brought multiple platters of food and set it down on the table. Once the man left, Tony’s face was back to neutral.

“You sure? You won’t call me- say, mad again?”

Steve shook his head violently. One perk of having a super soldier serum was he could do whatever he wanted to do as fast as he wanted to do. Steve liked being healthy.

“I...I am sorry about that Tony. We want to help. Really.”

"Why?"

Steve gulped. How was he supposed to answer that?

"Because," he sighed, letting words flow out. "Because you are our friend Tony. You are my friend and I don't want to hurt you. I was stupid back then. I should have heard you out. After you were gone, so many things began to make sense and if I had just heard...I can't change the past, but I can try and make the future better, right?"

Steve looked up, watching as Tony rubbed his temples, leaning forward on the table. “Well, I am changing the past you know?"

Steve grinned. Of course Tony would joke. 

Tony, for his part and smiled. "I am glad we are on the same page Cap. Last time we had a fight, we weren't even in the same library. If you really want to help, then you need to understand a few things.”

Steve nodded and immediately leaned forward, hoping to get anything at all before Tony decided he was too angry with Steve to actually tell him anything.

 “There are six stones, Steve. Six stones that were made before time itself, apparently. Don’t ask, I can’t explain. There is this guy called Thanos. He is a little off. I think he fell down as a kid or something and lost all that was within his head. He wants to collect these six stones and if he snaps his fingers while having all these stones, half of the universe will disappear.”

“Universe?” Steve managed to speak.

Tony’s eyes widened in realization. “Right. You haven’t encountered aliens yet.”

“There are aliens?” Really, this was Bucky’s forte.

Tony nodded, taking a sip from his glass. “Aliens, gods-demigods-whatever. Superheroes. Smartphones. AI’s. Future is a nice place to be Steve.”

Steve nodded. That was too much. “So this...Thanos. Is he an alien too?”

“He is an ugly oversized purple grape.”

Steve couldn’t suppress a laugh at Tony words and somehow managed to choke out a “What?”

“Yes, he is an alien Steve!” Tony said, infuriated as if he was teaching a kid. “So do you understand?”

Steve nodded numbly, before letting out a grin. “So we just have to stop him.”

“It isn’t easy,” Tony said, a dark expression on his face. “Thanos is smart, strong and an intellect. The planning must be flawless if you want to stop him. Ancient One’s words, not mine. I say let the Small guy who got big get in his ear and goes big there. His head will burst and he will die. Boom, story over!”

Steve didn’t really understand a word of that sentence, but he nodded nevertheless. “So when do we start?”

“Calm down Tinker Bell!” Tony laughed. “We don’t start for a long time. Right now, your aim is to eat everything that I have ordered and taken some dance and singing classes.”

Steve could only sit back in fear.

* * *

 

“I hate you!”

Steve looked at Tony with his best intimidating look and now that he was...well, bigger, it worked. But for a man who had lived with him for a year and probably long before that, it wasn’t much.

Tony just laughed as Steve walked in backstage after his first program. “Here comes the Star Spangled man with a plan!”

“Shut it Tones!”

Tony shut up, straight-faced, only for the corners of his mouth to start twitching again. Before he knew it, he was laughing all over again.

“I never thought I was going to see the day when Captain America was not a soldier, but a mere star-spangled man with a plan. Do you have any idea, Steve, how many times I watched those old videos of that poor quality on loop, hoping to just see it once in my life?”

Steve shook his head, sitting down on a chair with a huff. “This isn’t how I wanted to be Captain America.”

Steve buried his head in his hands, breathing deeply. He wanted to fight on the battlefield, no talk and act!

Felling a hand on his back, Steve looked up to see Tony sitting beside him and smiling. “When I was a kid, Cap, my butler, Jarvis knew how much I loved Captain America and he would often tell me tales about the first mission of Captain America. It was unexpected, unauthorized and absolutely amazing as he saved a ton of men.”

“You aren’t going to give me specifics, are ya jerk?”

Tony grinned, before shaking his head. “As the Ancient One said, I can’t tell you everything and there are some things which have to play out as it originally did. Else the world will fall earlier than it is supposed to.”

Steve nodded, hoping the path ahead was worth it all.

If only Bucky could see him.

* * *

 

Bucky struggled as he was strapped down on the bed.

It had been some time since they had been captured and every time someone went into the room he was being held in-they didn’t come back.

“Hello, Sergeant Barnes.” The short bald man and the tall weirdo looked at him with a creepy smile.

Bucky remained quiet.

“Are you ready for the experiment?”

Jesus, what were these idiots going to do to him?  Bucky closed his eyes, pretending he was anywhere but there. The men continued to talk, but Bucky could only think of the future.

What would happen when Steve got the news that he was captured? He would break down, try and enlist again. Bucky was pretty sure the younger guy would never get in.

And Tones? Would he ever find out?

Bucky felt a needle poke through his veins. Ignoring the pain, Bucky thought about Brooklyn. His nice home. After the war would end, he would like to go back, settle down, get a girl and marry her. Have two or three kids. Move to the suburbs maybe?

**YOUR NAME IS JAMES BUCKY BARNES**

**YOU ARE NOT A WEAPON.**

**YOU ARE NOT THE WINTER SOLDIER.**

**YOU ARE A WAR HERO**

**YOU ARE A GOOD MAN**

**STEVEN GRANT ROGERS IS A PUNK. SAVE HIM AT ALL COST.**

**TONY STARK IS A GENIUS, PRAISE HIM.**

**DON’T COMPLETE THE MISSION OF DECEMBER 16, 1991.**

As Bucky’s eyes flew open, he wasn’t sure if he should be happy or terrified.

The chip Tony had implanted in his brain was working.

And he had just been injected with the serum.


	8. Rescue...from what?

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Steve rescues Bucky from the Hydra facility and Peggy and Steve may be growing closer

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So, I am so thankful to all of you! This chapter is longer so hopefully, you will enjoy it.  
> I am again increasing the total number of chapter cause I realized I cannot finish everything in two chapters. Hope you don't mind and remain till the end!

Steve wasn’t sure how to hold himself in front of real soldiers. These were people who had fought out in the real world, with real weapons and seen the horrors of the world. They were the real heroes.

So when they began to throw things at him, he wasn’t that surprised. Sad, yes, but not that surprised.

The skies were grey, kind of reflecting Steve’s mood. He wished Bucky was there with him, for Steve knew the jerk would do anything to cheer him up.

“Missed me?”

Steve shook his head as Tony sat down beside him, peering down in his artwork. “A dancing monkey. I understood that reference!”

Steve raised an eyebrow as Tony shook his head. “It’s an inside future joke Cap.”

“Like Language?” Steve asked, shaking his head. Tony nodded, before looking around.

“Gloomy day, isn’t it? I wonder what Buck would think about this?”

Steve snorted. “He would probably complain about the weather.”

Tony shook his head fondly, before suddenly standing up. “I have some work to do. I will see you back at the time of the tour?”

Steve smiled and nodded. Tony clapped the super soldier on his back before moving away.

* * *

 

Steve had no idea how he had found himself on the Stark plane suddenly. One moment he was drawing the dancing monkey, then Peggy came over and then Colonel Philips told him about the presumed death of Bucky.

Bucky wasn’t dead, Steve knew that. So he had grabbed Tony from the main tent and had forced him on the jeep before Peggy came over with the offer of flying to the enemy lines.

Actually, that was exactly how Steve had found himself on the plane along with Tony and Peggy, with Howard flying the plane.

“What is in the suitcase, Mr Potts?” Peggy asked, looking at Tony with a raised eyebrow. From the short amount of time Steve had seen them together, Steve could guess she wasn’t fond of Tones.

“Just a weapon I am working on Ms Carter,” Tones said, pulling off his sunglasses. “If everything goes according to the plan, I may be able to give it the test run it deserves today.”

“You think you can make something to meet Stark weapons, Potts?” Howard’s voice came from the cockpit.

Tony huffed. “I know I can Stark.”

Steve hid a smile. If Howard ever found out that Tony is his future son, he would have a field day.

Before they could continue the banter, firing began on the plane.

“Tony, position, now!”

As Steve threw open the door, he started giving Peggy the orders.

“You can’t give me orders.”

“Hell yes, I can. I am a captain!”

Steve honestly did not know what made him bring Tones along, but when he saw him fly down with an armour made of iron, Steve knew he hadn’t made a mistake.

As Tony landed beside Steve, Steve looked at him with a huff. “This is Iron Man?”

The reply came in the form of a mechanical voice. “Yes. We don’t have the proper tech yet or else JARVIS would be helping me.”

“JARVIS?”

“My AI.”

Steve did not ask further.

The two barged into the enemy territory, Steve camouflaging himself. As soon as he got near the entrance, he gave a nod.

Immediately, Tony’s voice boomed in the area.

“Hello HYDRA. Missed me?”

Among the various indescribable shouts and running, Steve managed to sneak into the Hydra base.

He will save all the soldiers and Bucky. 

* * *

 

Bucky was just kept repeating the lines from the chip. Jesus, once he got his hand over Tony, he would kill the man with his bare hands.

TONY STARK IS A GENIUS, PRAISE HIM.

Praise him? What is he, a freaking deity?

Huh, that jerk. Of course, he would add something like that in the chip. As if Bucky would ever forget him. No amount of brainwashing was going to make Bucky forget Tony Stark.

Bucky kept repeating his tag number, his name, his position as the chip kept repeating the information in his brain.

STEVEN GRANT ROGERS IS A PUNK. SAVE HIM AT ALL COST.

Yes, Bucky agreed wholeheartedly. That punk did need saving. He wondered what Steve would be doing then.

If Bucky’s guess was correct, he would be trying to enlist himself in some other centre under a fake persona. Steve really needed to stop that.

“Bucky?”

Bucky opened his eyes at hearing the familiar voice again. Wow, the Nazi’s must be getting better at their imitation of Steve’s voice. Did they somehow manage to replicate the voice using his mind? Or was it some other equipment, trying to bring out his best memory?

As he felt the straps being opened, he looked around, looking at a face Bucky was sure belonged to Steve, but the body size just didn’t match.

Okay, so the Nazis got one thing wrong. There was no way in hell that Steve could get that big.

Unless...

“Is that...”

“It’s me. It’s Steve.”

Bucky couldn’t help but smile. “Steve?”

Steve smiled too, pulling him away from the bed. “Come on.”

“Steve!” Bucky repeated the name as if his life belonged to it.

As he was pulled down, standing after God knows how many days, Bucky couldn’t help but stare at Steve.

Steve held him carefully, so worried. “I thought you were dead.”

Bucky looked at Steve, scrutinizing. The body size...just didn’t match. “I thought you were smaller.”

He smiled, looking around. As Steve looked around, Bucky looked at the new physique of the punk. What happened to this guy?

Bucky staggered as he heard a mechanical voice from the doorway. “Steve?”

“In here Tones!”

Tones? The stupid time traveller genius? The one who had implanted the weird chip in his brain and giving him God knows how many weird sentences to comprehend? 

Bucky watched as a weird armour, made up of grey metal came towards him and Steve. The voice that came from within was Tones.

“Wait, is that you Bucky?”

Bucky looked at the armour, then at Steve, then again at armour. As the grey metal guy put another of Bucky’s arm over his metallic shoulder, Bucky couldn’t help but ask, “What the hell happened to the two of you while I was gone?”

* * *

 

Peggy Carter was not a woman who accepted defeat. She knew her value, she knew when she was right and when she had made a mistake.

Taking Steve across the enemy lines was clearly not a mistake.

So when she walked into the tent, hearing Colonel Philips declare Steve dead, she refused to believe it at all costs.

Walking in like nothing had changed she put down the sheets in front of Colonel.

“The last surveillance flight is back,” Peggy said, refusing to meet Colonel’s eyes. “No sign of activity.”

Peggy wasn’t scared but she wasn’t in a mood to handle Colonel’s problems either.

Colonel sighed, before ordering the Corporal to get away and moving away. She knew he was disappointed with her. But she didn’t care. She did what she had to do.

“I can’t touch Stark, He’s rich and he’s the army’s number one weapons contractor. You are neither one.”

“With respect sir,” Peggy stood straight, looking at the colonel, “I don’t regret my actions. And I don’t think Captain Rogers did either.”

She wasn’t going to back down. Not now.

“What makes you think I give a damn about your opinions?” Colonel barked, almost making Peggy flinch. Almost. “I took a chance with you Agent Carter, and now America’s golden boy and lot other good men are dead. All because you had a crush.”

Peggy looked up, looking confidently in the older man’s eyes. “It wasn’t that. I had faith.”

“Well, I hope that’s a big comfort for you when they shut this division down.”

Peggy continued to stare, refusing to back down. She knew Steve was going to make it alive.

It wasn’t a crush, it was faith.

“What the hell’s going on out there?”

Peggy followed, hoping it was some good news.

It might not be wrong to say her heart missed a beat when Steve Rogers appeared, leading all the imprisoned soldiers and a number of weapons.

Yes, she had faith.

She watched as he behaved in a fully disciplined way in front of the Colonel and couldn’t help but smile as Colonel mutter ‘faith’ to her.

But it was Steve’s fault as well. He should have contacted her. It was a good thing he was a captain or else following orders would be hard for him.

Peggy walked up to Steve, close enough to feel him but do not touch. She needed to make sure it wasn’t a dream or a hallucination.

All right, maybe she had a crush.

“You’re late.”

As Steve pulled out a broken, damaged walkie-talkie, she could only look at him. “Couldn’t call my ride.”

Peggy was breathing heavily. She ought to, for a heavy burden had lifted off her chest. She couldn’t stop smiling and neither could Steve.

She could vaguely hear a man-Sergeant Barnes, she presumed- cheering for Steve and Mr Potts clapping the younger man on his back.

Oh dear. She was smitten.

* * *

 

“So,” Bucky tilted his head, staring at Tony as brought the glass of whisky to his lips, “to sum it up, you left us, used some of the designs you remember from your time and got rich?”

Tony put down the glass with a laugh. “Don’t forget I spent nearly half a year with the Ancient one, who just happens to be a very sexy bald head. Don’t kill me for that o Ancient one!” he shouted at the ceiling, earning a chuckle from Bucky.

“Also, I learnt what to tell and what not to tell. Something about restrictions and such.”

Bucky clapped the older man on his back, smiling. “It’s good to have you back Tones.”

Tony smiled, winking at the man. “You too Buck.”

Bucky shook his head, before peeping out where Steve was trying to put together a team. “They are all idiots. They are going to follow Stevie like a puppy.”

Tony snorted. “And you aren’t?”

Bucky smiled wistfully. “Nah. I am going to follow the kid from Brooklyn who never backed down from a fight.”

Tony groaned and Bucky turned around with a frown.

“You know Barnes, these cheesy lines are the reason that I thought you and Stevie were together. You two are so sappy!”

Bucky snorted, punching the man. “And you aren’t?”

Tony shrugged, earning another grin from Bucky.

Bucky couldn’t help but smile. HYDRA was torture. Jesus knows what they had injected him with...

“Oh!”

Tony looked up at the sudden exclamation from Bucky. “What?”

“I forgot to tell you!” Bucky said, turning around. “You have already changed the future.”

Tony raised an eyebrow. “I think we have already established that.”

“No, no. You said they injected me with the serum and I became the brainwashed assassin. Well, guess what punk? They injected me, and I know that because your stupid chip began to work. And now I am not a brainwashed assassin! Great huh?”

Bucky was expecting a happy whoop or maybe even a smile from Tones. He did not expect all colour to leave his face.

“What?” Bucky asked worriedly.

Before Tones could answer, Steve came in with a smile.

“So, Tony, you coming or not? Cause I am sure this jerk is.”

Tony loosened up a bit, shrugging. “I don’t know Cap. What does it have for me?”

“Come on Tones! You are the one who wishes to save the world!”

“From a purple oversized alien!” Tony pointed out, “Not Nazis.”

“At least tell whether we win or not!” Bucky said, making sure to ask Tones about his reaction later.

“Figure it out yourself, genius.”

Before Bucky could retort back, a sudden silence filled the bar. Bucky, Steve and Tony leaned on their stool, looking out only to find Peggy standing there in one of the hottest red dress ever.

All of them stood in unison, as Peggy looked at Steve with a smile. “Captain.”

“Agent Carter.”

“Ma’am.”

Tony snorted at Bucky’s look. Bucky threw him a dirty glare as Tony smiled charmingly. “Hello, Agent.”

Peggy gives him a sly smile before turning to face Steve. “Howard has some equipment for you to try. Tomorrow morning?”

Steve nodded. “Sounds good.”

As Peggy looked out at the team Steve had put up, Bucky and Tony exchanged a look.

Bucky gestured to Peggy, before making kissing faces. Tony raised an eyebrow before letting out a scoff.

“I see your top squad is prepping for duty.”

Bucky gave one of his charming smiles. “You don’t like music?”

Without even sparing a glance, Peggy continued to smile at Steve. “I do, actually. I might even, when this is all over, go dancing.”

Ignoring Tony’s scoffs, Bucky asked, “So what are we waiting for?”

Looking deep into Steve’s eyes, Peggy answered. “The right partner.”

Bucky watched as Steve nodded slightly. “0800 Captain.”

“Yes ma’am, I will be there.”

As soon as Peggy disappeared from the room, Tony burst out laughing as Bucky looked at Steve with a frown. “I am invisible. I am turning into you. It’s a horrible dream.”

But below all the fun and joke, Bucky could see that Stevie, his Stevie, was smitten.

* * *

 


	9. Let yourself fall

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So honestly, this is one of the most difficult chapter I have written. You will understand at the end of it. I just hope you enjoy it and do let me know what you think.  
> Oh, and I have completed the epilogue for this, so yeah/ Only two more chapters to go...

“Okay, so 1st lesson.”

Bucky groaned, wrapping his head under the pillow. They had just taken down a HYDRA base and no he was not in any mood to hear Tony babble. He didn’t know how Steve managed to keep up with this madman, but Bucky couldn’t. He just couldn’t. It was bad enough the three of them were sharing the same camp.

“Barnes, you listening?”

Tony only received a pillow thrown on his face as an answer, which wasn’t even fluffy.

“Bucky...”

Bucky looked up at Steve’s voice. Glaring at the Captain, he sat up, frowning. He stared at Steve and then at Tony, who had somehow managed to bring some kind of board and chalk and had written down something along the lines of ‘Hawkeye’ and ‘Thor’.

Tony kept staring at Bucky, before sighing and taking off his glasses. “I haven’t exactly been honest with the two of you.”

Bucky snorted. “No shit, Sherlock.”

Steve sent a glare in his direction before turning to Tony. “What do ya mean?”

“To appear in 2012 and fight beside me, helping us fend off aliens and whatnot, you two need to give up your lives here in the battle.”

At once, Bucky sat up straight, looking at Tony as if he was a robot. “Say what again?”

Tony shook his head. “The War ends, we win, but the two soldiers of the Howling commandoes who give up their lives on duty are Sergeant James Barnes and Captain Steve Rogers. That is one of the most basic things taught in history books of the future.”

Bucky couldn’t hold back his surprise. Was he going to die and get revived? Wow, that was something. How good was the tech in the future? And how was that-

Wait.

_Wait._

“I get captured by those Hydra agents again, don’t I?”

Steve, who was silently sitting up till now, whipped his head around, his eyes widened in shock. “What? No, I won’t allow it to happen! Tony, we are going to change the future, right? You have already done it, how worse can things be if we both get saved?”

Tony sat down on one of the stood, rubbing his temples. “I...I don’t know. Look, what we are dealing with here is the basic thing. If I wanted I could have stopped the war from ever happening but we don’t know how much the world would change after that. You two...dying is what made SHIELD, the secret agency and the Avengers, our team, possible. It’s the first building block. If that doesn’t exist, a lot of other things will change as well.”

Neither Bucky nor Steve could speak.

“I will give you a very basic example from my own personal life,” Tony continued, finally looking at them. “My old man, Howard, he got obsessed with finding your body after you died Cap. It was that obsession that led to his negligence towards me and being the dick of a father that he was. But if he wasn’t that, say, because both of you survived, and then I would have a relatively happy childhood. A relatively childhood could change so many equations. Maybe I would never become Iron Man. Say the Avengers still form without me existing. But in the first fight, I took up a nuke up in space that no other person could do because they did not have armour like me. As a result, New York disintegrates and Thanos become powerful much earlier. You see where this is going?”

The tension that had speared in the tent could be cut down using a knife. Tony’s facts were so true that damn it hurt. Bucky had once read a cheap sci-fi novel where one change managed to change the whole future.

He and Steve needed to give up their lives to save the world. More along the lines of him becoming a pawn in the hands of Hydra.

“Can you tell me what happens to us?”

Tony looked up at Bucky’s question. “Not exactly. If I tell you what happens, then you will try to save yourself, which would still create a problem. All I can say is that you, Mister, have to let yourself fall and Steve, you have got to crash the plan.”

That did not sound good. Gulping, Bucky turned to look at Steve.

The Captain looked furious. Bucky was worried if Steve was going to have the same reaction he did two years ago that made Tony leave.

“Steve?” Tony said softly. The man merely stood up and walked out of the tent, almost ripping off the fabric.

Tony and Bucky stood up, intending to follow him. Bucky gestured Tony to sit down as he ran behind Steve. Tony could get hurt, he wasn’t superhuman.  Bucky, meanwhile, could still handle him.

* * *

 

Steve was angry. No wait, that was an understatement. He was furious.

He wasn’t going to have a happy life. It wasn’t that bad-when he joined the army he was ready to give up his life. He still was and according to Tony, he and Bucky did give up their lives for their country. But then somehow, by a miracle, they both manage to survive and only wake up in the 21sst century.

Okay fine, so he would have a life he often found himself dreaming with Peggy. Fine.

What was not fine that Howard Stark neglected his child.

When they had first met Tony, he had told them that he never wanted to talk about his family. After Tony left, Steve thought because his family was dead and somehow apparently, Bucky killed them.

(Which was not going to happen this time around.)

When Steve met Howard, he liked the other man a lot. He was young and snarky and something like Tony. He was also a good friend.

However, knowing that he had hurt one of his closest friends put a huge red mark on the genius himself.

Steve spotted the weapons dealer talking to his men. Probably checking their weapons.

Steve could vaguely hear Bucky shouting behind him but ignoring the other man’s voice, he walked up to Howard.

* * *

Howard was proud that it was his weapons, his creation that had allowed the Howling Commandoes to win.  He was listening to the story by Dum Dum and Dugan when he heard heavy stomping behind him.

Howard’s face lit up when he saw Steve make his way towards him.

“Hey, Steve, What’s...”

He never managed to finish his sentence as Steve grabbed him by his hand and literally pulled him between two tents. Howard wasn’t sure what he had done to receive such kind of treatment, but he could make out Sergeant Barnes running to them.

As Steve pinned Howard on one of the bamboos, he looked at the man. Howards felt himself going weak under the bigger man’s gaze. His knees began giving away and Sergeant Barnes presence only made Howard feel worse. His glare did not look better.

Steve raised his finger and began speaking as if he was talking to a child.

“What is your plan after the war ends?”

He looked at Sergeant Barnes, who had now crossed his arm and was looking at him threateningly.

“He asked you a question, pal!”

There was no friendliness in his voice. Gulping, Howard looked at Steve. “I...um, I don’t have many future plans. Except for new weapons designs.”

Steve pushed him to the bamboo. “So here’s what is going to happen. After a few years, you are going to get married and have a nice little boy. Maybe I will be there. Maybe I won’t. But if I find out that you are not paying attention to your kid, or neglecting him by any chance, trust me Stark, I will dig out of my grave and come to tell you what it means to be a bad father.”

Howard nodded violently. He never thought about having a kid and he now sure didn’t want to.

Steve left his collar, causing him to stumble. Throwing one last glare in his direction, the two best friends turned and began to walk away.

“You don’t think that will change the future?” Howard heard Sergeant Barnes say.

Howard barely managed to hear Steve say, “Doesn’t matter. Tony doesn’t deserve any less.”

* * *

 

Peggy could barely hide a smile as the Howling Commandoes entered the base in London. It was Christmas and Steve had somehow managed to convince the team to relax for a day before they took off again.

She was really looking forward on meeting the group again. Especially Sergeant Barnes. Howard’s call had been very amusing after all.

_“Colonel, Captain and his sergeant friend have lost it. They threatened me for neglecting a child that I don’t even have! You think the serum had side affects?”_

_“Of course not Stark! It must be something else.”_

Peggy shook her head at the memory. Howard sounded scared, which was very rare for the genius.

“Missed me Agent Carter?”

Peggy whipped around in shock. Just beside her stood Tony Potts, the infamous competitor of Stark.

“Mr Potts,” Peggy managed to clam herself down. “You gave me an almost heart attack.”

“I wasn’t aware you could be scared so easily.”

“I am also merely a human after all.”

Tony grinned and Peggy couldn’t help but smile. She wasn’t that close to the man but he just had a way with words.  He was as close to Steve and Sergeant Barnes. Which was weird, considering they only knew each other for a small while.

“How have you been?” he asked.

“Have been trying to make sure your weird armor remains a secret.” Peggy sighed. Tony’s armor, which he had officially dubbed as Iron man was to remain a secret. After his appearance at so many bases, that was getting difficult, but at least nobody had managed to snap a picture of that one weapon.

“Might I ask why it needs to remain a secret?”

Tony chuckled, shaking his head. “I do not wish to sell comic books like Captain America. That is why my existence is a secret.”

That was true. Tony Potts was like a ghost. While he produced one of the best weapons for the war, his origins and life was shrouded in mystery. It was as if he had dropped off from the sky on one fine day.

“I don’t think you are interested in my life that much, Miss Potts. Why, your lovely Captain is here.”

And indeed, Steve Rogers was just on the doorway, laughing with his friends.

Well, better late than never.

* * *

 

Another night with Tony listening about the future?

Bucky groaned. He had heard so much about aliens and purple oversized grape now that he was truly tired. Even his chip, which Tony had managed to update and could actually hold all of Bucky’s memories now, had begun to feel like a burden.

“What are you going to tell us about now?” he groaned.

Steve nodded. For the first time, Bucky could see, even he was tired. Knowing you were going to die and then be alive was sure confusing and very exhausting.

“How it all went wrong.” came Tony’s answer.

Both Bucky and Steve sat up straight, looking at Tony in confusion.

“What?” Steve finally asked.

Tony sighed, opening a bottle of scotch. He poured down three drinks, knowing full well neither Steve nor Bucky could get drunk. But Bucky had a suspicious idea that Tony was pouring all the three drinks for himself.

“Remember Wanda?”

Steve nodded. That was a young girl with some weird powers of manipulating the mind and things.

“She had a brother, Pietro. They were twins. One of the weapons that Stane had illegally sold was the reason their family and homeland had been destroyed. They hated me. So the first time we met, she showed me a vision.”

Gulping down the drink in one go, Tony looked down and continued. “I saw that our team was dead and that was because of me. That made me imagine that could make an AI which could save the world. I named him Ultron.”

“Didn’t you already have an AI?” Steve asked, “JARVIS? And you said one more-FRIDAY, I think?”

Tony nodded. “Yes Cap, but those were my personal AI’s. I wanted one which could save the world. So I got Bruce’s help and using Loki’s scepter, I started creating the AI. I wanted to put JARVIS in it but JARVIS, he, he basically died. The primary reason I had to bring FRIDAY in the play.”

Steve nodded as Bucky listened intently.

“JARVIS hadn’t exactly died. He was just broken. Ultron was creating an android, by the help of Dr Cho. We managed to rescue him and I put JARVIS in him and Thor put the mind stone in him.”

Bucky nodded. He knew Thanos was after the stone. So if he got all the stones that meant he managed to kill Vision.

Ouch.

“As a result, I lost JARVIS. Now, I am begging both of you, please stop me from giving JARVIS away because without J, I am not functional. I tried. FRIDAY was great and all but still.”

“So we have to stop you from putting JARVIS into Vision?”

Tony titled his head, thinking. “We do actually need Vision, I think. I don’t know, okay? Just, try and stop me from making Ultron in the first place.”

Steve nodded.

“And if Ultron still happens, please, for the love of God, sign the Accords.”

“What are the Accords?”

* * *

 

Taking one Hydra base after the other did get tiring, but when the news came the Zola was being transported on a train, Bucky didn’t want to stop.

As everyone began to get ready for the attack, Tony entered the tent. He looked miserable. Bucky didn’t blame him-by the time Tony had finished the story of the so called ‘Civil War’, all three of them were guilt ridden and in tears.

“Hey Bucky, can we talk?”

Bucky had no idea how Tony was still talking to him. How could he look at him and not see his parents’ murderer?

Not believing in himself to speak, Bucky stood up and followed tony into the corner.

Once they were away from the crowd, Tony looked at him strangely.

“The chip’s working?”

Bucky’s hand automatically reached to touch the chip embedded din his flesh. “So far yes. I can’t even feel it now.”

Tony nodded. “Good, it isn’t giving you any problems right? Headaches, eyesight problems?”

Bucky shook his head. “Why this sudden interest in the chip after all these days?”

Tony did not answer. He merely placed his hand over Bucky’s shoulder and looked him in the eye. “Remember to stay strong no matter what happens. Be smart and no matter what happens, never give in. Pretend if you want to, but never think that everything is lost. Steve and I, we will always find you.”

Before Bucky could ask what happened, Tony was out of the tent.

When the Commandoes told him that Tony wasn’t joining them that day, he was sure what had happened.

But then, when he was holding on to a railing on a moving train for his dear life, Bucky understood.

_Let yourself fall._

Giving a sad smile to Steve, knowing what was going to happen, Bucky let go of the railing.

The future better be worth it all.

* * *

 


	10. Crash the plane

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ha! What is this? An update within a day?  
> Well, my exams start this Friday and I want to finish this story before that so that I can give my exams in peace. So hopefully, nobody will complain if my updates are daily.
> 
> This chapter contains angst, some language(you know what I mean ) and a slight mention of self-harm-like, if you are searching for it you might get it kind. And I have been called cruel and evil-i can't say how happy I am.  
> *evil laughter
> 
> But honestly, we all knew that was going to happen. So let me know what you think of this chapter and then I might update tomorrow.

Steve Rogers was a calm man. In fact, he was very calm. He seldom got angry and it was even rare to see him show his anger. Before the serum, he did not have the same restraint. However, later, he knew his strength could actually hurt someone. It was that thought that actually always managed to pull him back.

However, that did not stop him as he rushed into the camp they had to report back to. The Howling Commandoes were far behind, not even daring to follow their leader. Steve knew why-his eyes were bloodshot and they had probably never seen Steve in such rage and so murderous.

All of them knew the reason for it.

Sergeant Barnes was dead.

Everyone followed him, keeping a safe distance as he stormed into the base camp. He did not waste a second to enter Tony’s tent.

Everyone must be thinking-oh, what a poor thing! Tony Potts goes off duty the same day Bucky Barnes had to die!

But Steve knew. He damn knew why Tony had not come.

That bastard knew what was going to happen.

Tony was working on something, concentrating on whatever he was working on when Steve entered the tent. Steve watched as he lifted his head up.

In that one second, Steve saw that Tony was a mess. His eyes were red, mostly from crying. He was sniffing profusely and it was pretty clear he had purposefully not taken any safety measures to protect himself.

But Steve didn’t fucking care. He walked across the tent and grabbed the older man by his collar, almost lifting him up.

The Howling Commandoes were thankfully nowhere near, or else the whole thing could be in grave danger.

“You knew!” Steve almost shook the shorter man, making him lose balance as the table toppled. “You fucking knew that it was going to happen today! You could have saved him!”

“You very well know I couldn’t Rogers,” Tony said in a calm voice, in an eerily calm voice. “The Universe was at stake...”

“FUCK THE UNIVERSE!” Steve shook the man and threw him off balance. Tony landed on the floor with a thud, groaning in pain.

Steve realized he was crying, his eyesight hazy. “I don’t care what happens to the fucking world! My best friend is dead! Or worse, if what you say is true!”

“You think I don’t fucking know that Rogers?” Tony said, looking up, finally raising his voice. “You think it isn’t killing me that I led our friend to his torture? I fucking know what Barnes will become in the future! I have seen him fight and kill. So don’t for a moment think it is any easier for me. He trusted me first despite my crazy theories and my erratic behaviour. He is as much of a friend to me as he is to you! You think I am enjoying it right here?”

Steve looked at the older man as he buried his head in his hands, sobbing uncontrollably. A part of him wanted to comfort Tony, but the other just couldn’t stop blaming him for his friend’s death.

They freaking knew this was coming. But...that did not ease the pain. It just did not.

Without another word, Steve walked out. He needed to think and he needed a drink.

* * *

 

Talking to Peggy had helped. She...she had a way with words. It killed Steve knowing that they will never have a future. He wished he could change that.

But he needed to talk to Tony first.

Steve found Tony in another one of the bars, drinking away. For the first time in his life, Tony looked tipsy. He looked drunk like hell and Steve was, for a moment, jealous that Tony could do that.

But if things were going according to the plan, then Steve’s own demise was coming closer and he did not wish to spend his last few days in the 40s away from Tones. So he just slid in beside Tony, ordering one more drink.

For the longest moment, neither spoke. The silence was the most comfort they could gather, it seemed. Had Bucky been there, he would be cracking some joke or degrading them both. But not then.

“You know Steve,” Tony finally said after a long time, “It has been over five years since you met me.”

Steve smiled. Yes, it was around seven years ago that Steve had found Tony in an alleyway. God, how time flew.

“It has also been seven years since I have seen or heard my fiancée.”

Steve’s head snapped at the statement. “You had a fiancée?”

Tony snorted. “Yeah. Her name was Virginia Potts, but I and everyone called her Pepper.”

Steve’s eyes widened in understanding. So that is where Potts came from.

“I know about Pepper,” Steve said, scratching his head. “You told me and Buck about her when we were discussing dames. Red hair, your ex-secretary, dated you for a while and then broke off cause you were making too many suits right?”

Tony grinned. “Yeah. When we were in the middle of the Accords fiasco, you thought we were expecting. Had I not been under pressure, that would be hilarious.”

Steve allowed himself to smile sadly. He couldn’t help but wonder what life would be for him and Peggy if she somehow survived the 21st century. 

“I don’t know if she survived, you know?” Tony said, twirling the glass in his hands. “I mean, I saw the Guardians and Peter disintegrate in front of me, but Pepper? No idea. I don’t even Rhodey survived, or Happy did. In fact, I don’t even know if you survived.”

“We will change it all Tony,” Steve said, placing a hand on the other man’s shoulder. “We will make sure that nothing happens.”

Tony looked up, a small wistful smile on his face. “I hope so. I have done everything to ensure Bucky goes through less. The chip will keep most of his personality intact. And I have added a feature that will absorb most of the torture. The tech of the 40s could only do so much, but I am a genius right?”

Steve smiled, before nodding. Tony looked at him as if staring into his soul.

“What?” Steve asked.

“You want something.”

“I want a lot of things, Tones.”

“Still.”

Steve sighed. “I wish...I wish I could have a life with Peggy, you know? You mentioned that Bucky is there in the future, you are there, we have a team and we...we sound happy. But, I just, I just hope Peggy could be there. ”

Steve didn’t look up. He couldn’t. Shaking his head, he smiled back at Tony. “But that is just a dream Tones. You can’t have everything. We have to start the work to take down Schmidt. The colonel will be talking to Zola. Let’s get back.”

They both stood up. Sharing one glance, they just hugged each other, finding solace in each other after losing a friend.

Steve just hoped he is able to correct it all.

* * *

 

Peggy could not contain her excitement as Steve’s voice came through. She wasn’t a very unrealistic woman, but in all honesty, that kiss was something else.

It was her, Tony Potts, Jim Morita and Colonel Philips in the control room when the voice came through. She pushed Morita away as soon as she heard Steve’s voice. She wasn’t even apologetic. Peggy didn’t care.

“Steve, is that you? Are you all right?” was the first thing she asked.

“Peggy, Schmidt’s dead.” Came back Steve’s reply. Peggy could tell everyone around her was relieved.

Peggy too was happy. But, “What about the plane?”

“That’s a little bit tougher to explain.” Came back the answer and behind her, Potts drew in a breath.

“Give me your coordinates. I will find you a safe landing site.”

“There’s not gonna be a safe landing,” Steve said, and Peggy could feel her strength break. No, that couldn’t be true. “But I can try and force it down.”

Peggy didn’t believe it.”I will get Howard on the line. He will know what to do. Or, oh wait.” She turned around, looking at Potts. 

“Tony,” she said, calling him by his first name in forever, “You ought to know what to do.”

“Tones is there?” Steve asked and his voice almost sounded relieved. “Peggy, there isn’t much time. This thing is moving too fast and it is heading for New York.” There was a silence from both sides, broken by Steve’s, “I have got to put her in water.”

Peggy wanted to be calm and answer something logical when Tony suddenly took over. “Steve, you don’t have to. I know what I said but you send us the coordinates. We will figure something out.”

Peggy turned to look at the man. She did not understand what he was saying but he almost looked...broken. He had already lost one friend, losing another would be worse.

“No Tones, I gotta do this.” Came Steve’s answer. “I have to let her down. For the Universe right?”

Peggy watched as the older man crumbled behind her, crying freely. “Steve, I know what I said but I can’t. Bucky...we will figure something out. Just send the damn coordinates. Fuck the Universe!”

Steve chuckled. “And I thought you were the logical one. Nah, you made a long journey to do this. You didn’t stop for Bucky, you ain’t gotta stop for me.” There was a silence and Peggy could not fathom what Steve must be going through. This was all too much.

“We will see each other in seventy years, huh?”

Tony sniffed loudly. “Yes, you jerk. In Seventy Years. But I will be a different man then.”

“I can work with any version of you,” Steve said and Peggy could guess he was smiling on the other end. “If you don’t mind Tones, I gotta speak to my best girl.”  

Peggy was sure Tony was going to refuse, but instead, he just nodded and said, “See you in some seventy years, Steve.”

Without even waiting for a reply, Tony walked out of the room, leaving Peggy alone with Steve.

“Steve,” she again tried, “Are you sure?”

“Peggy, this is my choice.”

Peggy just closed her eyes, trying to stop the tears.

“Can I ask for a favour, Peggy?”

“Anything Steve.” She somehow managed to say.

“Take care of Tones, will you? He...he has gone through a lot.”

Peggy nodded. “Yes, of course, I will.”

“He might disappear for a while but when he comes back....just take care of him okay? You will know what I mean in a while.”

Peggy nodded, not even asking for an explanation.

The silence stretched and none of them had any idea what to say. Peggy could hardly contain her tears. She too wanted to leave but she just couldn’t.

 “You know,” his voice came suddenly, “I am gonna need a rain check on that dance.”

Choking back on her tears, Peggy tried to make her voice as firm as possible. “All right. A week, next Saturday, a Stork Club.”

“You got it.”

Peggy sniffed. “8:00 on the dot. Don’t you dare be late. Understood?”

“You know, I still don’t know how to dance. My friends were good dancers, but horrible teachers.”

Peggy chuckled, before sniffing loudly. “I will show you how. Just be there.”

“We’ll have the band play something slow,” Steve said as if it was just another normal date night that they were discussing. “I’d hate to step on your...”

The comm. cut off and Peggy just couldn’t accept it. “Steve?”

She kept repeating his name, hoping he would just come back, hoping that it would all just end. But no voice greeted her again, saying “I am here” or “Yeah, about that dance.”

She didn’t stop the tears as they came. She didn’t want to.

* * *

 

A week later, on Saturday, Peggy watched as couples entered the Stork Club, laughing and holding hands. A part of her, an unrealistic part of her was hoping that Steve appeared with the crowd as well. But she knew that wasn’t going to happen.

The war was over, everyone was joyous. On one side, the remaining of Howling Commandoes were raising their glasses in the remembrance of their fallen soldiers-the Captain and the Sergeant.

“I know I am not Steve, but I don’t think any lady must be allowed to sit here alone. So can I offer you a dance?”

Peggy's head whipped around to find Tony smiling at her. It was a strained smile, but a smile nevertheless. He was again back in his suit and a pair of sunglasses over his eyes.

Steve had asked her to take care of Tony. She intended to keep her promise. Peggy smiled herself, standing. “Of course, but only if the gentleman would kindly take off his glasses.”

Tony nodded, taking them off and putting them on the table. He extended his hand and Peggy took it.

As they walked on the dance floor, the band began to play soft music. Peggy couldn’t help but remember what Steve had said.

_We’ll have the band play something slow._

“Do you have someone special in your life, Tony?” Peggy suddenly asked. All these years, despite working together, she had never asked the man anything personal. Now, however, she wanted to know everything about this man.

Tony smiled sadly, looking elsewhere, lost in thought. “I do. But I haven’t seen her in a long time.”

“Did something happen to her?”

“Not exactly.”

As Peggy realized that Tony was not going to elaborate further, they fell into a comfortable silence.

“He deserved better.”

Peggy closed her eyes. She knew whom Tony was talking about. “Yes, yes he did. But we don’t always get what we deserve.”

“But he should,” Tony pressed, “I mean, after all this, I don’t really blame half of his behaviour.”

Peggy raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“He wanted a future with you,” Tony said looking at Peggy with sad eyes.

“So did I.”

They suddenly stopped dancing, just standing there. Tony wanted to say something, but he just couldn’t.

“Peggy, do you believe that he is alive?”

Peggy was taken aback. The man crashed his plane into ice. There was no way he could survive that.

“I do not believe in the impossible Tony.”

“But the serum was an impossibility as well.” Tony pointed out. Peggy couldn’t help but agree. Hoping that Steve was alive was stretching her hopefulness too much. But did she dare to hope?

“Even if he is alive,” Peggy said, “We don’t know how long it will be before we find him. It could be as short to as long as possible. I...I don’t know how to handle that.”

Peggy looked up to see Tony’s eyes light up. They looked like what Howard’s eyes looked when he had found something new to invent.

“What if I told you that he will come out of ice, eventually, but after a very long time? After almost a century? Would you prefer to wait?”

“I will wait for him for an eternity of possible Tony,” Peggy answered, playing along, “But I am afraid after a century I will be too old for him. I don’t want him to have anything except the best in his life.”

It felt so nice, pretending that Steve was alive and just waiting to be rescued. Just the prospect of something was so wonderful.

Tony suddenly pulled her away from the crowd, looking deep into her eyes.

“Do you trust me?”

Peggy was taken aback. What kind of question was that?

“Steve trusted you. That is enough for me.”

Tony smiled a happy smile that somehow made Peggy very hopeful.

“Well then, I have an idea. I will have to explain a lot of things to you and tell you a lot, but I will make things right. Steve will get what he deserves. Just wait for me. It might take some time, but everything will be fine.”

Before Peggy could understand what the cryptic words meant, Tony dashed out of the Club, leaving her confused.


	11. A Goodbye

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> "GAAASP!"  
> Another update within six hours?  
> Well, I just stopped writing and I couldn't not share it with you guys. So yes, the epilogue will be updated just within two minutes. plus, I need to study for my exams so I am happily ignoring updating schedule.  
>  Hope you enjoy this chapter!

It was about six months later that Peggy saw Tony again. She was just starting her morning, getting ready to get back on her work at the SSR when the doorbell rang.

No one came to her home at six in the morning, so obviously Peggy was suspicious. Taking her gun from the counter, Peggy slowly moved towards the door. Her heart hammering in the chest, Peggy peeped through the peephole.

She let out a deep breath as she was Tony standing on the other side of the door.

She opened the door at once, a huge smile spreading over her face. “Tony! Where have you been?”

“Trying to make sure you and Cap have a happy life.” Tony said.

Peggy’s smile immediately dropped. She, she was trying to move away from it all. She couldn’t do it. She already had Howard’s illusions to handle, she couldn’t handle Tony’s.

“Tony, I...”

Tony immediately raised his finger to his lips, barging in her house.

“That day, in the club, you said you trusted me. Does that still stand?”

Peggy looked at him, nodding. “Of course.”

“So no matter how crazy ass theory I just told you, you would believe me?”

 Peggy blinked. “Probably.”

“Great,” the man muttered. “Okay, so Agent Carter, brace yourself.”

Peggy merely raised an eyebrow.

“My real name is Anthony Edward Stark and I am Howard’s son from the future. In the future, this weird purple alien is trying to kill us all and Steve and Bucky knew that. Neither of them is dead, merely frozen. Well, Steve definitely is, I don’t know about Bucky and I would rather not think about it. Anyways, Seventy years later, Steve will wake up in the future, looking the same as he looked the day we last saw him. Bucky won’t change much in looks either. Steve will have a whole life in front of him before we face the purple alien and I have a plan to make sure you two have a happy ending.”

Peggy finally blinked. “What?”

Tony sighed, rubbing his temples. “I managed to steal Steve’s blood form, Howard-”

“Howard had Steve’s blood?!”

“-And I have managed to recreate the super serum. I want you, Peggy Carter, to take it.”

There was a momentary silence, during which Peggy continued to stare at Tony.

She finally said, “You are insane. Steve’s gone.”

Tony’s shoulder slumped as he walked forward. “No, he isn’t. You said you trusted me.”

“You are being absurd!” Peggy said. “Tony, that is impossible. Time travel? Seriously?”

“Steve believed me!” Tony commented.

“Then he was equally insane!” Peggy retorted. “Wait, Howard’s son? Is that why he and Barnes were threatening Howard to treat his future non-existent son well?”

Tony’s eyes widened dramatically. “They threatened Howard? Seriously?”

Peggy flailed her arms. “It doesn’t matter! What you are saying, Tony is scientifically impossible! Even I am versed enough with texts and knowledge to know that.”

“Peggy!” Tony moved forward and took her hand into his. “Look at me and tell me you see no resemblance between me and Howard.”

Peggy was about to open her mouth and say no, but she couldn’t. She had seen it before, she could see it again. Howard and Tony were not only physically similar but also behaviour wise.

“I...”

“In the future, in my childhood,” Tony said, “You are my Aunt, I call you Aunt Peg. Once I got into college I stopped talking to you and we lost all contact after that, but you were one woman who always believed in everything I said, no matter what Dad or Mom said. I need that Aunt Peg.”

Peggy just continued to stare. Could it be possible?  Could Steve...

“And even if you won’t take the serum for Steve, take it for the betterment of the people. Once you retire, things go to shit. We need you to save our world. Steve and Bucky knew what they were doing were necessary to save the world, I need your help too. Please.”

Peggy continued to stare at Tony. “The serum is supposed to be destroyed.”

“I managed to recreate it,” Tony answered. “Please, Peggy.”

Peggy didn’t know why, but she just believed him. Sighing, she nodded.

She hadn’t ever seen someone turn so happy so swiftly. Tony immediately left her side and began muttering to himself happily.

Maybe, a part of her wanted Steve to be alive after all.

He grabbed her hand and pulled her out at once.

“Tony! I have work!”

“Which can wait,” the man said excitedly. “I leave tonight and I want the future to be perfect.”

* * *

 

Peggy was shocked to find herself in the same lab in which Steve had been injected with the serum. It looked almost ghostly, considering the lack of people there. But the equipment had been changed, upgraded and there were some major calculations on the board.

And there were a group of people there, with a bald woman in the centre.

“I see you have managed to convince Agent Carter for this mission.”

Tony shrugged like a kid, before hurrying down. Peggy followed behind, her eyes never leaving the bald woman. Thankfully, Tony had the intelligence to introduce them.

“Peggy, this is the Ancient One, the master of mystical arts.”

The woman smiled, her hands behind her. “It is a pleasure to meet you. I have heard quite a bit about you.”

The things were getting more and more bizarre, but Peggy only managed to nod. Somehow, despite her practical self-telling her this was all wrong and that there was no such thing as the mystical arts, Peggy allowed herself to be led to an adjoining room by the ‘Ancient One’.

Once they were alone, Peggy began looking at her clothes. She hadn’t exactly dressed that morning thinking she was going to be a part of an experiment, but thankfully, there was already a spare set of clothes for her there.

“I trust this must be confusing for you,” the woman said.

Peggy gave a humourless chuckle. “You have no idea.”

The Ancient one smiled as Peggy took the clothes. The bald woman began staring outside, looking at Tony.

“He has been through a lot to ensure that our world does not descend to chaos and destruction,” The ancient one said as Peggy changed. “Even if you do not trust him, I appreciate that you are accepting his words. He has lost too much to make the world a safer place.”

The woman looked back at the exact moment Peggy was dressed in the proper clothes. “He is trusting you with a lot of knowledge.  He will hand over a small notebook with a series of events that will happen. You will have to ensure that you overlook some of them while changing the ones he has asked you to.”

The Ancient One then gave her a smile. “You do not believe him now, but as the events unfold, you will.”

Peggy doubted it. She even doubted it why she was there. None of it made sense.

But something was pushing her to do this.

Without giving a reply to the other woman, Peggy walked out. Her insides were tingling and butterflies fluttered in her stomach. She was nervous as she slept on the same bed on which Steve had once laid down.

Tony came over, flashing a smile. “You ready?”

“If I die, Potts, I will forever haunt you as a ghost.”

Giving a grin to the woman, Tony injected her and put some of the fluids in the same place that was used during Steve’s time.

She continued to look above, hoping this was worth it all.

The thing enclosed her as she heard shouts from around. They were going to use the whole block of Brooklyn again. It will be a case for days to come.

She barely heard as Tony shouted orders, and began to feel as the serum made its way into her body.

* * *

 

The first thing she realized was heat. Then pain. Then both of them together.

_You have to do this._

Why? Why did she have to do this? This wasn’t making any sense!

_You are doing it for the future, for a future with Steve._

Did that even exist?

The fire raged through her veins as she began to scream. The pain was too much.

But she was so close. She wasn’t going to give up.

Tony did not stop until he had given the full power, and until the white light managed to blind them all.

As the doors finally opened, Peggy felt a breath of relief. She wasn’t sure if she could stand and she was very glad for a pair of hands that steadied her.

“How do you feel?” came Tony’s voice.

“Like if I punch you, I will be able to knock out most of your teeth,”

Tony had the audacity to laugh, before putting a hand on her shoulder. “Trust me, Peggy, it will be worth it all.”

* * *

 

Things went on in a haze after that. As soon as she was sure she could stand on her feet, she was handed her old clothes which seemed far too tight for her. But they couldn’t wait, as officials would come to check what caused the power shortage.

It was then that she realized why these people dealt with mystic arts.

Everyone began moving their hands and disappear the equipment into nothing. For a moment, she saw even Tony doing the same, before taking out the ring and handing it over to someone else. She was hurried away through a portal of some kind and where she was taken, she fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow. 

When Peggy woke up, she saw a different kind of ceiling that she usually faced. And beside the ceiling was the face of the Ancient one.

“I believe you would like to say goodbye before all of this ends.”

“Goodbye?” Peggy raised an eyebrow.

“Yes,” the bald woman said, “Tony is leaving in less than an hour.”

 It took barely fifteen minutes for Peggy to get up and go see Tony in the main hall, standing and talking to various other people.

“You are leaving?”

Tony turned at once, smiling gently. “Yeah, I need to get back. I have already stayed too long in a wrong time and the longer I live here, the more changed the future can be.  We are already risking so much, we can’t risk more.”

“You can’t leave!” Peggy protested. “I...I promised Steve I would look after you.”

Tony’s face lit up. “He didn’t mean me, Peggy. He meant the mini-me, probably. Be there when Howard is being a shit dad.”

Peggy wasn’t sure how to answer that.  However, Tony seemed more than happy to change the topic. He walked up to her, handing her a small brown notebook.

“Everything underlined in red cannot be changed, yellow you can tweak a bit and green ought to be changed,” Tony explained. “It won’t be that difficult, I hope.”

Peggy looked up, teary-eyed. She didn’t want to lose the last person who was as close to Steve as she was.

They didn’t need to exchange words as Tony led her away and began recounting tales of when Steve was a scrawny kid, telling Peggy not to change some very basic things that happened in the future and how to operate herself in the future.

Before she knew it, it was time for Tony to leave.

As the last phase came and the sorcerers began to start the process, Tony gave a grinned at her. “Change the future, would ya?”

Peggy smiled, nodding and clutching the notebook dearly.

One moment, she was looking at Tony’s smiling face and the next, he was gone.


	12. Epilogue

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tony waked up in the future

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yes, this is the final part. Enjoy the story!

Tony Stark knew that there was nothing known as impossible. He had become a superhero, seen magic and science go together, faced aliens and best of it all, time travelled.

So obviously, after a visit to the Ancient One, who decided that finally, it was time for Tony to return home. When Tony found himself on a soft mattress that couldn’t be found in the 40s, he knew that he was back to the present.

The question was: how much had changed?

_The first time Tony Stark met Steve Rogers, the Captain is out of breath in Berlin, looking at Loki tired and all he can mutter is “Mr Antony Edward Stark.”_

The memory was nothing new, except, maybe the phrasing of the words.

Tony was so afraid of that one question that he did not want to open his eyes. He continued to snuggle on a pillow, pulling his blanket over him, hoping that everything was just fine.

But, unfortunately, his genius mind never stopped working. His mind kept going through scenarios which could have made him end up on such a fluffy bed.

After coming with 14 million scenarios of how it could have gone wrong, Tony gave in the temptation and opened his eyes.

Above him was a plain ceiling that Tony knew belonged to the room he had in the Stark Tower in New York after 2012.

Tony couldn’t stop the choke of relief that came over him.

“Good morning Sir. It is April 2018 and there is a nice warm weather outside.”

Tony’s eyes snapped wide open at the voice.

“J? Is that you?”

“Indeed sir,” came the mechanical voice, “It is me. It seems as if the events of the past few days have left you confused.”

Tony couldn’t trust himself to speak. Past few days? More like the past few years!

“Vis-Vision?” he couldn’t help but ask. As much as he had missed JARVIS  after the whole Ultron fiasco, Vision had kind of grown on him. He was just so...real.

“Vision is currently in Miss Wanda’s room while Pietro is glaring at the closed door.”

Now that was a nice....wait!

“Pietro?” Tony immediately sat up on his bed.

“Yes Sir, Pietro Maximoff, codename Quicksilver, pow-”

“Yes, I know who that is J!” Tony almost snapped. The AI was far too snarky for his own good. Maybe he should change a bit of program-no, he didn’t want to. JARVIS was perfect.

But if Vision existed, how did JARVIS exist at the same time? He had put whatever was left of JARVIS in Vision.

His train of thoughts was interrupted by a pounding headache. Tony clutched his head as a small memory made his way at the back of his mind.

It was hazy, but Tony could figure out that it was of the time when Tony had made his first circuit board at four. He remembered that.  Except...

Was that Howard Stark patting him and congratulating him on his invention?  And was he actually helping Tony?

“Sir?”

“I am fine JARVIS,” Tony said, shaking his head. “Just a hangover.”

“If I must remind you, Sir, you haven’t touched a drop of alcohol in over four years.”

“It’s a different kind of hangover J!”

Thankfully, Jarvis kept quiet as Tony stood up and made his way to the bathroom. Looking at his own face, Tony felt relieved.

He was back in 2018.

He was sleeping in his bed.

JARVIS was alive.

Things had definitely changed for good.

* * *

 

Tony didn’t waste any time to ask for others. As soon as he had taken a nice warm bath and dressed in modern clothing, thank Jesus! Tony asked JARVIS where everyone was.

“All the residents of the Tower have moved to the communal gym, sir. It seems as if Captain Rogers and Sergeant Barnes are having a fight. The Avengers are divided on whom they support.”

Okay, so Steve and Bucky both were in the Tower. God, that is good.

“Everyone includes?”

Jarvis didn’t miss a beat and began answering at once, “Captain Rogers, Sergeant Barnes, Agent Carter, Ms Romanoff, Mr Barton, Dr Banner, Thor, Ms Maximoff, Mr Maximoff, Vision, Mr Wilson, Mr Lang, King T’Challa, Princess Shuri, Mr Parker, Mr Keener, Colonel Rhodes, Dr Strange, Star-Lord, Gamora, Nebula, Mantis, Drax, Rocket, Groot, Mr Hogan and Mrs Potts.”

“Mrs Potts?”

“Yes sir, Mrs Pepper Potts, your wife.”

The future, Tony decided, was brilliant.

* * *

 

For all that he tried, Tony just couldn’t bring himself to face everyone. The last time he had seen anybody, except Peggy, whom he was assuming was Agent Carter, was some three years ago. Damn, three years. How was he supposed to face anyone?

In the last hour, Tony had a lot of headache attacks, mostly consisting of memories from the past. Not much had changed, except his Dad actually had begun to care and Aunt Peggy had begun visiting more often. The last blink of memory had happened not even a minute ago.

“Sir,” JARVIS interrupted, “If I must say, Secretary Ross is on the line. He does not sound happy.”

“When does he ever sound happy?” Tony asked. JARVIS did not answer, but continued, “Shall I put him through?”

“There’s no need.”

Tony snapped his head at the voice. He hadn’t heard that voice...in about eight years. Wow, he hadn’t heard Pepper’s voice in eight years.

And yet she looked exactly as he remembered her. Wearing a smart pencil skirt, a white blouse, long red hells, her hair pulled in a ponytail and beautiful dark lipstick on her lips. She did not look happy.

“Secretary Ross can wait one more day JARVIS,” Pepper said, entering the room and looking at the ceiling. “Or maybe a month. We are not having any talks of the Accords. Tony and all the other Avengers need the rest.”

“Very Well Ma’am.” He said and Tony knew he had disappeared. But he could not bring himself to stop staring at Pepper.

Eight years he had spent without this woman and Tony just could understand how incomplete he was without her. She was everything he had and the last time they had talked, he had left her alone on the Earth.

She hadn’t changed and Tony was never gladder in his life.

She turned to him, her lips pulled in a thin line. “We need to talk.”

Uh-oh.

Pepper crossed her arms and continued to stare at Tony. “It has been three days now Tony. Did you think about what I said?”

Ummm....no?

Pepper sighed, walking to Tony. She gently pressed her hands on his cheek and he couldn’t help but lean to her touch. God, he had missed her so much.

“Tony, it is high time you give up your suits.”

Tony’s eyes snapped open. Oh God, not this again.

“Harley is more than ready. He went up with you to fight Thanos and you yourself said that he was amazing. You promised you would try for me and for our child. Harley is more than happy to be the next Iron Man. Please Tony, just pass on the mantle already.”

Too. Much. Information. In five sentences. His mind was officially blocked.

Pepper gently took his hand placed it on her stomach. Whoa, did her stomach just move? Like, on her own? With no help from outside and anything?

“You don’t have to stop manufacturing Tony,” Pepper said, “And if someone like Thanos comes down again, which I really hope won’t, you can get back into the armour. But please, I want our child to have a normal childhood. Well, as normal as he or she can have in a superhero family. But still. Please?”

Tony slowly looked up, meeting Pepper’s eyes. He...he was just talking about returning back home to the Ancient One, to a happy family. This...This was a dream come true. The last time he and Pepper had talked it was about kids.

Wow.

“Tony?”

Tony snapped out of his gaze to properly look at Pepper. She looked worried.

“You all right?”

“Just fine,” he said at once, “trying to think over what you said. Stop being Iron Man. Do I have to sign some papers to do it?”

Pepper raised an eyebrow. “Um, no. You sure you all right Tony? JARVIS?”

“Sir has been experiencing some repeated headaches for the past one hour. He refuses to let me scan him and is not willing to talk.”

“What?” Pepper turned to Tony with a worried gaze. “You are having headaches? What is it? some attack?”

“No,” Tony shook his hand, standing up and taking her hand into his. “Pepper, I will tell you everything< I promise, just let me figure it out myself.”

Pepper did not look convinced.

“Here’s an idea, why don’t you go the gym and wait for me there? I’ll be there in five. Everyone’s still in the gym, right J?”

“Yes Sir, and if I may add, they are all getting restless and it seems Agent Carter will ask Sergeant Barnes for a round. I do not think you wish to miss that.”

“Great!” Tony looked at Pepper with a smile, before pulling her into a kiss.

Eight years and he hadn’t forgotten how he had felt. It was still amazing, feeling Pepper like that. Feeling that she existed, in real and that she was not just a memory of the past.

As he pulled apart, Pepper looked flushed.

“Tony, that...”

“I know,” He pressed a chaste kiss on Pepper’s cheek and said, “Five minutes and I will be down there.”

* * *

 

Back when they lived in the Tower, Tony had planned on building a communal gym for all of them. As Vision was created and it was quite clear that Wanda and Pietro would be joining them, Tony kept imagining a communal gym.

He was happy that his dream had become a reality.

Walking into the gym, Tony couldn’t help but smile. There, on one end, stood Rhodey, on his own legs. Beside him stood Lang, Pepper and Happy, all laughing on something Rhodey must have said.

On the other side, Clint and Thor were sitting down and both had ridiculous hairstyles. What happened to Mr L’Oreal’s?

Just on the other side of Clint, there was a mop of white hair which Tony guessed belonged to Quicksilver. It looked like he was sleeping, using Clint’s hand as a pillow. Beside him sat Wanda and Vision, both stuck together.

On his left, the space team was sitting and enjoying the fight. The green woman might be Gamora and...was that a racoon? And a tree, playing a video game?

Shaking his head, Tony turned to his right, where three teenagers sat, tired. Tony’s heart stopped when his eyes fell on the familiar red and blue suit, but there was no mistake that the boy sitting in the middle was Peter Parker. He was gently snoring away and Tony absolutely melted. On his one side sat Shuri, Tony recognized and on the other, Harley.

Boy had Harley grown. He looked like a young man and he was wearing an iron man suit. Okay, maybe he knew what Pepper meant.

“All right, enough!”

Tony snapped his head to the extreme right. Natasha stood there, her usual mask on. T’Challa and Sam seemed to have a discussion as Bruce looked on with interest.

And the woman who had called was Peggy Carter.

God, when he had injected her with the serum Tony hadn’t imagined she would continue to look that young. But she looked like the only thing that made Tony believe that this was a reality.

Looking in the centre, his eyes fell upon his two friends. His two most recent friends.

Steve Rogers and Bucky Barnes.

It looked as if Steve was going through his bad boy phase, with the grown beard and moustache. He looked like an emo, honestly. What was Steve thinking?

And Bucky...god, he looked like the Winter Soldier. Except, his metal hand had hello kitty designs and his hair was shorter than the last time Tony had seen him in the Siberian Bunker, but definitely longer than the time Tony had seen him during the War.

Peggy marched up to the two boys as they were caught midway during their fight. She looked...well, angry.

“You two have been fighting for an hour now. I think we can deduce that both of you are equally strong. Can we drop it now?”

“Come on Carter!” Bucky said. Tony could already see the difference in the man he had known in the 40s and the man standing in front of him. Bucky had said that in a playful tone, but there was no smile on his face.

Tony was going to kill HYDRA.

“No, James, enough is enough!” Peggy said, before turning to Steve. “You two have been sparring for a long time no. Give rest. See, half of the people here are asleep.”

Steve smiled and was about to say something when his sight fell on Tony. Smiling like he was greeting an old friend, which he was, Steve said, “Tony hasn’t seen us fight yet. What do you say, Tony?”

As all the eyes in the room turned to him, Tony stood straight. It’s show time.

“What I think is,” he began, looking at the three super soldiers, speaking in the accent he had picked up in the last few years from 40s New York “that you three did a damn good job in changing the future. When I woke up this morning I almost expected to be on that forlorn planet. Thanks a lot.”

The expression on their faces was worth it.

(The hug by the two male super soldiers that followed immediately after was not. He was going to have a back ache for days!)

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> AAAAND, it is a wrap!  
> Thank you to everyone who ever read this story, making it so popular! I am so so grateful to you all!  
> The next part of this story, which will be a story of how things changed will start after July. It is Steggy, Peeperony and BuckyNat. So, If you don't want that, sorry to disappoint you guys.  
> However, I do write STony, Stucky and the OT3 of Steve, Bucky and tony. If you have an idea in mind, just message me!
> 
> Enjoy!

**Author's Note:**

> So, how is it? Good? Bad? Please tell me!


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